WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush formally suspended Bolivia's participation in a U.S. program granting tariff exemptions to imports from Andean nations, the White House said Wednesday, citing La Paz's alleged failure to cooperate sufficiently in the war on drugs.

The suspension of the customs advantages will take effect December 15, in accord with the communique released by presidential spokesperson Dana Perino.

Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru and Colombia have benefited since 1991 from the Andean Trade Preferences and Drug Eradication Act, or ATPDEA, intended to reward those countries for their efforts against the trade in illegal drugs.

In her statement, Perino said that if Bolivia "improves its performance," Bush - who leaves office Jan. 20 - could reestablish the ATPDEA benefits.

The president two months ago began the process of cancelling those benefits. During the intervening period, the White House received public commentary on the move and held a hearing on the subject through the office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

At the hearing, Felipe Caceres, who directs Bolivia's battle against the drug trade, warned that the end of the ATPDEA benefits would cause unemployment and "swell the ranks of drug trafficking."

Bolivian exporters and business leaders said loss of the trade benefits would put at risk 50,000 jobs at factories that annually export $380 million in products under ATPDEA and other similar programs.

Bush's decision comes at a time of substantial tension in relations between Bolivia and the United States.

In September, Bolivian President Evo Morales expelled U.S. Ambassador Philip Goldberg, accusing the envoy of colluding with rebellious provincial governors in the eastern part of the Andean nation.

Washington responded by throwing out Bolivia's ambassador to the United States, Gustavo Guzman.

Since then, Bolivia announced the expulsion of personnel from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, accusing DEA agents of heavy-handedness and of political meddling.

Bolivia, like neighboring Peru, allows cultivation of coca - the source of cocaine - in limited amounts to meet demand for legal, traditional uses in cooking, folk medicine and Andean religious rites.

Morales said in September that politics was behind Bush's push to end the trade benefits, and he cited U.N. reports identifying Bolivia as a regional leader in the "fight against drug trafficking with a concerted reduction (in coca leaf production) without violating human rights."

The Bolivian president, who entered public life as the leader of a coca-growers union, came to office in January 2006 promising to end forced eradication of coca, a program that had led to violent confrontations.

Along with seeking to promote new industrial applications for the leaf, his leftist government has sharply increased seizures of cocaine.

Colombia, which remains the world's largest producer of cocaine, receives roughly $500 million a year in military aid from the United States. EFE



Click here for the White House Press Release announcing the suspension.



Click here to read our previous coverage of President Morales trip to Washington and our prediction that his lobbying efforts would not succeed: "Bolivia President Morales Visits U.S. Saying He Wants Better Relations -- But Does He Really?"