LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) - Backing away from his tough campaign talk against U.S.-sponsored trade initiatives, Bolivian President-elect Evo Morales said Friday he no longer rules out a free-trade deal with the United States and three other Andean nations. But he did not say he supported such a deal, either.The leftist coca grower who will be inaugurated Sunday said in an interview with The Associated Press that he is now open to the idea of a joining a pact he strongly opposed as recently as November. "I understand that governing is doing good business for your people," he said.
| Is he getting a clue or just tap-dancing? |
Morales, who has often criticized the United States and who once promised to be "Washington's nightmare," left his options open. He said Bolivia could consider negotiating to be included in the proposed bloc that would slash trade barriers between Colombia, Ecuador and Peru and the United States.
But he also said the impoverished nation could be better served by joining the Mercosur trade bloc comprising Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay or by seeking stronger trade ties with the European Union.
| Get a subsidy from the EU and do a free-trade deal with us. Best of both worlds. |