U.S. calls Bolivia unrest an ‘ongoing coup d’état’ as Paz faces strike-linked paralysis

“Ongoing coup d’état” is how Washington is now framing Bolivia’s mounting unrest, a rare escalation in language as strikes and street pressure leave President Rodrigo Paz Pereira struggling to keep the country moving. In an account published by Foreign Policy, the United States characterized the weeks-long crisis in precisely those terms, portraying the turmoil as more than routine protest politics and signaling that it sees the confrontation as an attempt to unseat the government rather than a dispute that can be negotiated away. ^[1]

The Washington Examiner described the immediate flashpoint as May 2026 strike action that has paralyzed daily life, blaming left-wing strikers and militias it said are allied with former president Evo Morales for tightening a siege-like grip on transport and governance. In that telling, U.S. officials have not only spoken publicly in support of Paz, who took office in 2025, but also worked to rally backing for him across Latin America as the crisis drags into its latest week. ^[2]

The move comes after clashes on May 18, when anti-government demonstrators and police confronted each other in Bolivia amid deepening protests that placed the capital under intense pressure. Those street battles, marked by escalating confrontations between security forces and crowds, set the stage for Washington’s sharper denunciation as the standoff broadened from demonstrations into a nationwide paralysis. ^[1]