Bolivian president fears alleged U.S. scheme

To say that Bolivian president Evo Morales is concerned about traveling to America for today's U.N. General Assembly meeting would be a tremendous understatement.

According to CNN, Morales said that he was afraid that U.S. authorities would plant something on his presidential plane to tie him with drug trafficking.

Speaking to a group of female farm workers this past weekend, the Bolivian president said: "Do you know what? I think they have to be preparing something. So much that I'm afraid to go with our airplane to the United States. Surely when we arrive, they can plant something and detain the presidential plane."

Morales, who was still planning to attend the meeting, added: "They are preparing something to discredit us with drug trafficking."

The U.S. Embassy in La Paz offered no comment on Morales' statements.

Opposition leaders were critical of Morales' remarks, among them Rep. Jaime Navarro. "The president has to understand that these types of messages are not good, because he who has not done anything wrong has nothing to be afraid of, and when the president shows these fears it makes the population worry and it harms his international image."

The president's supporters, however, argued that Morales had been the subject of harassment by the U.S.

Relations between Bolivia and the U.S. have been strained since 2008, when both countries expelled each other's ambassador. Morales later forced out the Drug Enforcement Administration, claiming it instigated political opposition.

A coca-growers union leader -- coca being the ingredient of cocaine -- Morales was elected in 2005 as Bolivia's first Indian president. Known for his left-wing policies, he has been linked with Cuba's Fidel Castro and Venezuela's Hugo Chavez.