US EditionBolivia candidate vows to scrap China, Russia lithium deals
Jorge Quiroga, a former vice president, pledges to end $2 billion lithium extraction contracts with Russia and China to reform Bolivia's economy and international relations.
- On Monday, Jorge Quiroga vowed to scrap $2 billion lithium contracts with Russia's Uranium One and China's CBC, signed in 2023 and 2024, as he and Rodrigo Paz head to a runoff later this year.
- Seeking to shift ownership, Jorge Quiroga and Ramiro Cavero propose transferring shares in Bolivia's mineral sector to individuals, ending state control under the Movement Towards Socialism.
- Indigenous groups have sued to scrap lithium contracts on environmental grounds, while Quiroga claimed contracts were awarded 'behind the back' of local authorities; nearly all lithium remains underground at 3,600 meters in the Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia.
- Quiroga said he would first seek a $12 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund and multilateral lenders, break ties with authoritarian leftist governments including distancing Bolivia from Iran and Nicolás Maduro, President of Venezuela, and cut taxes to attract foreign investors.
- The Lithium Triangle's scale means Bolivia, vital to global battery markets, faces economic challenges after exports plunged from $2.175 billion to $1.256b amid its weakened economy.
67 Articles
67 Articles
Bolivia candidate Jorge Quiroga vows to scrap China, Russia lithium deals
Bolivian right-wing presidential hopeful Jorge 'Tuyo' Quiroga vows to scrap billion-dollar lithium extraction deals struck by the outgoing government with Russia and China, if elected in October 19 run-off.
Associated Press News
Bolivia's right-wing ex-president Jorge Quiroga says he'll 'change everything' if elected
Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga was once seen as a sideshow in Bolivia’s presidential races, his pleas for free markets and small government falling on deaf ears in a country dominated by leftism.
Right-wing presidential candidate in Bolivia Jorge Quiroga said in an interview with AFP on Monday that lithium deals struck with China and Russia by outgoing leftist Luis Arce "will not be approved" if he is elected.
Rodrigo Paz, from the right-hand centre, and the conservator ‘Toto’ Quiroga will dispute the presidency. For the first time it is marked by the defeat of the left, in particular of the MAS, founded by Evo Morales.
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