UNASUR to hold emergency summit over ’virtual kidnapping’ of Bolivian president

Following refusal by countries in Europe, including France, Portugal and Spain to grant the Bolivian head of state’s aircraft entry into their airspace, a group of South American nations is set to hold an emergency summit on Thursday. The meeting of the 12-nation UNASUR bloc will be held in Cochabamba, Bolivia, with the presidents of six nations confirming their attendance so far, including Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Argentina, Uruguay and Suriname. President Evo Morales was en route to the capital of La Paz from an energy summit in Russia when his plane was forcefully rerouted to Austria on Wednesday, due to suspicions that NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden was being on board. Morales refuted speculation that Snowden had stowed away on the plane, with Austrian officials later confirming his absence. Several days earlier, Morales had indicated that a request for asylum for Edward Snowden would be considered. The move to detain the presidential plane triggered a wave of furious rhetoric from Latin American leaders who alleged it had been “kidnapped by imperialism.” “This is an excuse to try and frighten, intimidate and punish me. An excuse to try and gag us in the fight against the dominant economic powers,” said Morales.