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Bolivian president suspends participation in EU, ALBA meetings due to knee operation

Xinhua, June 9, 2016 Adjust font size:

Bolivian President Evo Morales suspended his participation in a meeting with the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, due to a knee operation, Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera said Wednesday.

His meeting with the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America's (ALBA) Political Council in Caracas, Venezuela was also cancelled.

"Travelling for a meeting he had today with ALBA has been suspended as well as his trip to the European Union (EU)," said the government official.

Garcia said during a news conference that Morales had to suspend at least three of his international trips scheduled for the upcoming days due to an operation on his left knee which took place on Wednesday morning.

Since cancelling his appearances at the international meetings, Morales' doctor Jorge Terrazas at the Los Olivos Clinic in the central city of Cochabamba has labeled the operation for torn ligaments and meniscus in his left knee as a "complete success."

The post-operation process will include two days in hospital and then the president will wear a splint for two to four weeks, according to Nils Calderon, another doctor present during the operation.

After the splint is removed, Morales will begin his rehabilitation with physiotherapy that will last between eight and 12 months, added Calderon.

"During this time, the president should avoid the sporting activities that he currently participates in," said Calderon.

The operation took three hours and 15 minutes and was carried out by a team of Bolivian doctors at the Los Olivos private clinic.

Morales had a presentation in front of the European Parliament planned as well as meetings with the European Commission between June 14 and 15.

He was "the only South American president invited" to the European blocs annual meeting, according to Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca.

Bolivia and the EU maintain a complex agenda of cooperation that has prioritized issues related to justice and the fight against drug trafficking over the past seven years.

With this in mind, Bolivia asked the European bloc to eliminate the need for Bolivian citizens to obtain a visa before entering the EU countries. This petition is still being discussed.

Due to the operation, Morales did not head Wednesday's cabinet meeting and will not attend the inauguration of the National Summit for Justice on Friday and Saturday in the southern city of Sucre. Enditem