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Trump’s Stance on Bolivia Slammed by Argentina’s Next President

Trump’s Stance on Bolivia Slammed by Argentina’s Next President

(Bloomberg) -- Argentina’s next leader threw his first barbs at U.S. President Donald Trump even before taking office.

Expressing opposing views over Latin America’s political upheaval, President-elect Alberto Fernandez criticized Trump’s support for the departure of Bolivia’s Evo Morales, who fled Monday to Mexico after the military asked him to step down following weeks of public unrest due to irregular election results.

Fernandez, who takes office Dec. 10, saw the events in Bolivia as a military coup. Trump applauded the leftist Morales leaving Bolivia.

The U.S. “regressed decades” on foreign policy and “moved back to the worst of the 1970s, endorsing military interventions against popular governments,” Fernandez told an Argentine radio station Tuesday.

It stood in stark contrast to Trump’s view.

“The United States applauds the Bolivian people for demanding freedom and the Bolivian military for abiding by its oath to protect not just a single person, but Bolivia’s constitution,” Trump said in a statement.

The disagreement comes just ten days after Trump called Fernandez to congratulate him on his election victory. At the time, Fernandez told Trump he hoped they’ll have a “cordial” relationship, yet some analysts say the rapport is poised for a tumultuous future given the different political ideologies of both leaders.

Fernandez also doesn’t share Trump’s view that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is a dictator. Trump has made Venezuela his top policy priority in Latin America, with current Argentine President Mauricio Macri serving as an ally to Trump on the issue.

Separately, Fernandez must renegotiate a record $56 billion credit line with the International Monetary Fund. With the U.S. as the IMF’s largest financier, the Trump administration will likely influence the future of any new deal with Fernandez’s government.

To contact the reporters on this story: Jorgelina do Rosario in Buenos Aires at jdorosario@bloomberg.net;Patrick Gillespie in Buenos Aires at pgillespie29@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at jspinetto@bloomberg.net

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