ABSTRACT
Between 1930 and 1970, Bolivia suffered through the Great Depression, lost a catastrophic war with Paraguay, and conducted a far-reaching socioeconomic and political revolution. These events contributed to a major reorientation of Bolivian foreign policy. The Chaco War was a catalyst for the development of Bolivian nationalism as well as a leading cause of the 1952 National Revolution. Anti-imperialism sentiment grew in this period, and in the first seizure of a US company in Latin America, Bolivia nationalized the Standard Oil Company of Bolivia. During World War II, the scope and depth of Bolivia’s bilateral relationship with the United States began to expand with the latter ever more deeply involved in the internal and external affairs of Bolivia. Bolivia also resolved outstanding territorial disputes with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Peru, and it established important new commercial ties with all four states. On the other hand, Bolivia failed to expand commercial or political ties with Chile, and it also failed to secure a sovereign outlet to the Pacific Ocean. The Silala, Lauca, and Maurí watershed disputes came to a head in this period, and in the case of the Silala and Lauca disputes, Bolivia for the first time joined those issues to the seaport issue.
