Did Bolivia try to sneak Edward Snowden out of Russia?
Probably not. But that rumor apparently grounded an angry Bolivian President Evo Morales' plane in Vienna.
The Edward Snowden saga just keeps getting stranger.
The newest character to make a cameo is Bolivian President Evo Morales, whose presidential jet made an unscheduled stop in Vienna on Tuesday, reportedly being denied entry into Portugal and France's airspace while en route from Moscow back home to La Paz.
The reason? Rumors that Snowden was hitching a ride with Morales, according to Bolivian officials. The idea of Snowden being spirited out of his extended stopover at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport aboard a presidential jet was first proposed for — then denied — by Ecuador's Rafael Correa, who, like Morales, was in Moscow for an oil and gas conference.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The rumor isn't true, Bolivian Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca said from La Paz. "We don't know who invented this lie. We want to denounce to the international community this injustice with the plane of President Evo Morales." Bolivian Defense Minister Ruben Saavedra, who was on Morales' flight, disagrees with the first part of that statement. "This is a hostile act by the United States State Department which has used various European governments," he said in Vienna.
A U.S. Defense Department official tells Bloomberg that the Pentagon didn't ask any NATO allies to deny overflight rights to the plane, and the State Department referred all questions to France, Portugal, Spain, and the other countries involved. French officials said they couldn't confirm whether Morales was turned away, and Portuguese officials didn't respond to initial media inquiries.
Still, none of the rumors are implausible. Morales on Monday said Bolivia would certainly consider Snowden's asylum request, once it arrived. "Of course, Bolivia is ready to take in people who denounce — I don't know if this is espionage or monitoring," he told Russian media. "We are here." While Correa and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said they had no plans to sneak Snowden out of Russia, "Morales' remarks appeared to open the door," say Rick Gladstone and William Neuman in The New York Times. Or "at least that was the way they were interpreted."
Meanwhile, U.S. officials have been working diplomatic back channels to make their case why Snowden should be turned over to the U.S. to face his theft and espionage charges.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
It appears, however, that Snowden really wasn't on Morales' airplane. Austria's interior ministry said they had checked the passports of all passengers on the aircraft, and agreed with the other basics of the Bolivians' story. "The plane was, of course, allowed to land, although many other countries apparently were concerned and afraid that Snowden was on board," Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner told TV network ORF.
Assuming all this is true — his presidential plane was forcibly rerouted at the last minute over an unsubstantiated rumor — Morales has legitimate reason to be ticked off.
Now we can all turn our attention to Venezuela's Maduro, who is scheduled to spend Wednesday in Belarus before returning to Caracas. He said Venezuela would seriously consider Snowden's asylum request, once received, and gave a spirited defense of the NSA leaker. "This young man of 29 was brave enough to say that we need to protect the world from the American imperial elite, so who should protect him?" he asked, rhetorically. "All of mankind, people all over the world must protect him."
Maduro probably won't try to smuggle Snowden out of Russia, either — for one thing, official government aircraft usually land and take off from a different Moscow airport — but he is having a little fun with the story. "It's time for me to go," he said at the end of an interview with Russia Today. "Snowden is waiting for me."
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Experts call for a Nato bank to 'Trump-proof' military spending
Under The Radar A new lender could aid co-operation and save millions of pounds, say think tanks
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Inside Chopard's hotel on Place Vendôme
The Blend Swiss jewellery maison Chopard unveils its new jewel, an ultra-exclusive Parisian hotel that elevates the art of hospitality
By Felix Bischof Published
-
Today's political cartoons - October 14, 2024
Cartoons Monday's cartoons - Columbus Day, the death of satire, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
1 of 6 'Trump Train' drivers liable in Biden bus blockade
Speed Read Only one of the accused was found liable in the case concerning the deliberate slowing of a 2020 Biden campaign bus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Supreme Court rejects challenge to CFPB
Speed Read The court rejected a conservative-backed challenge to the way the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is funded
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Arizona court reinstates 1864 abortion ban
Speed Read The law makes all abortions illegal in the state except to save the mother's life
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published