Bolivia–Chile relations

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Bolivia–Chile relations

Bolivia	Chile

Bolivian-Chilean national borders had not been agreed upon until 1866, when the two countries had negotiated a treaty[1] that established the 24th parallel south as their boundary. In Chile, the territories recognised as Bolivian on the Pacific coast were seen as ceded, while in Bolivia they were seen as finally recognised by Chile as Bolivian. This treaty also entitled Bolivia and Chile to share tax revenue on mineral exports out of the territory between the 23rd and 25th parallels. The area between the 25th and 23rd parallels would also remain demilitarized. A second treaty in 1874 superseded this, entitling Bolivia to collect full tax revenue between the 23rd and 24th parallels, but fixed tax rates on Chilean companies for 25 years.^[1] At the time, most economic exploitation of the coastal region was being conducted by Chilean companies and British interests under the aegis of Chile's more robust economy and more stable institutions. Bolivia subsequently became dissatisfied at the arrangement due to the negative financial status of the national budget, especially after the earthquakes that struck Cobija in 1868 and 1877. This was the only small coastal town founded by Bolivians.

War of the Pacific (1879-1904)

In 1879, Bolivian dictator General

1904 Bolivia-Chile treaty

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2009)

Further negotiations (1964-1978)

Diplomatic relations with Bolivia continued to be strained because of Bolivia's continuing aspiration to have access to the sea. In 1964, Bolivian President Víctor Paz Estenssoro severed diplomatic relations with Chile. Generals Augusto Pinochet and Hugo Banzer resumed diplomatic relations and attempted to settle the territorial disputes. Secret negotiations started in 1973, and in 1975 diplomatic relations between Chile and Bolivia were established. That year, Pinochet and Banzer met in the Bolivian border town of Charaña. Pinochet agreed to give Bolivia a small strip of land running between the Chilean city of Arica and the Peruvian border. However the Treaty of Lima between Peru and Chile specified that Chile must consult Peru before granting any land to a third party in the area of Tarapacá. Peruvian President General Francisco Morales Bermúdez did not agree with the Charaña proposal and instead drafted his own proposal, in which the three nations would share administration of the port of Arica and the sea immediately in front of it. Pinochet did not agree to this proposal, and Banzer broke ties with Chile again in 1978. The failure of the Charaña accords was one of the reasons for Banzer's downfall that very year.

Since the 1990s

Bolivian gas conflict

In early 2002, the administration of President Jorge Quiroga proposed to build a pipeline through neighboring Chile to the port of Mejillones, the most direct route to the Pacific Ocean to export Bolivia's newly discovered gas reserves. However, antagonism towards Chile ran deep in Bolivia because of the loss of Bolivia's Pacific coastline to Chile in the War of the Pacific (1879–1884).

Bolivians began campaigning against the Chilean option, arguing instead that the pipeline should be routed north through the Peruvian port of Ilo, 260 km further from the gas fields than Mejillones, or, better yet, first industrialised in Bolivia. According to Chilean estimates, the Mejillones option would be $600 million cheaper. Peru, however, claimed the difference in cost would be no more than $300 million. Bolivian proponents of the Peruvian option said it would also benefit the economy of the northern region of Bolivia through which the pipeline would pass.

Supporters of the Chile pipeline argued that US financiers would be unlikely to develop processing facilities within Bolivia. Meanwhile, the Peruvian government, eager to promote territorial and economic integration, offered Bolivia a special economic zone for 99 years for exporting the gas at Ilo, the right of free passage, and the concession of a 10 km² area, including a port, that would be exclusively under Bolivian administration. President Jorge Quiroga postponed the decision shortly before leaving office in July 2002 and left this highly contentious issue to his successor. It was thought that Quiroga did not want to jeopardize his chances of re-election as president in the 2007 elections.

After winning the 2002 presidential election,

Evo Morales, who was elected president in 2005, is strongly opposed to having a foreign consortium export Bolivia's natural gas without processing it domestically. He argued it should be used domestically to help Bolivia, the poorest country in South America.

Chile and Bolivia maintain consular relations and appear to have become friendlier.^[when?] Former Chilean President Ricardo Lagos attended the inauguration of Bolivian President Evo Morales. In 2015, Morales announced his intention to establish conditional diplomatic relations with Chile in order to achieve Bolivia's aspiration for sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean via Chilean land. Chile, on the other hand, wants unconditional diplomatic relations. ^{[citation needed]}

The dispute with Chile was taken to the International Court of Justice. The Court ruled in support of the Chilean position, and declared that although Chile may have held discussions about a Bolivian corridor to the sea, the country was not required to negotiate one or to surrender its territory.^[3]

Resident diplomatic missions

• Bolivia has consulates-general in Santiago and Arica and consulates in Antofagasta, Calama and Iquique.^[4]
• Chile has consulates-general in La Paz and Santa Cruz de la Sierra.^[5]

See also

• Landlocked country
• Puna de Atacama Lawsuit
• Foreign relations of Bolivia
• Foreign relations of Chile

References