Bolivian President Evo Morales threatened Thursday to shut down the U.S. embassy in his country after a forced re-routing and downing of his plane earlier this week on suspicion that NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden was on board.

Morales was flanked by the heads of state of Venezuela, Ecuador, Argentina, and Uruguay as he announced the possible embassy closure at a special meeting in Cochabamba, Bolivia. He declared:

The South American government leaders blasted the ‘kidnapping’ of the Bolivian president as an act of brute power, revealing that the U.S. and European governments still view themselves as the colonial rulers of Latin America. Uruguay’s president Jose Mujica declared:

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa pointed out:

Washington is widely believed to have applied the political pressure to France, Portugal, Italy and Spain that led to the forced downing of the Bolivian president’s flight. European countries acted on a tip that Snowden was on board the flight, the media revealed Thursday, but they refused to admit where the information came from.

Snowden was not found on the flight.

Morales said Tuesday that he would grant political asylum to Snowden if asked. Critics have slammed the U.S. for the global manhunt for Snowden, declaring it retaliatory against whistleblowing and bullying of countries that do not participate in the crackdown. Guardian writer John Pilger had harsh words for the incident:

The U.S. remains silent about the ‘kidnapping’ incident.

Click Here: cheap all stars rugby jersey

_____________________