On the afternoon of June 26, the events came thick and fast in that country’s actual capital of La Paz, though not the way rebellious, already former army commander, Gen. Juan Jose Zuniga wanted them to. He announced intent to "return the motherland", oust legitimate president Luis Arce, and arrest ex-president Evo Morales, who lost his chair in the previous military coup of 2019.

The atmosphere reminded of stereotype coup ideas in some Latin American "banana republic". General Zuniga brought military units to the square in front of the Presidential palace in La Paz. Then an armored car drove into its courtyard with soldiers aboard who forced their entrance into the building.

But there was something that does not usually happen in this sort of scenarios. President Arce was not killed or arrested or at least deprived of communications means. By contrast, he managed to appeal to his people for support. Via his X (former Twitter) account, the national leader called on the armed forces to honor democracy. "We denounce irregular mobilizations of some units of the Bolivian Army. Democracy must be respected," the head of state posted.

Following a short period of perplexity, President Arce was reported to have sworn in new Bolivian army chief Jose Wilson Sanchez Velazquez. And the latter decided to cut a long story short and ordered — right at the swearing-in ceremony — that all the military personnel who occupied the square before the palace return to the barracks, which they obediently did. Moreover, they acted in real haste, "fleeing in trucks," as Bolivian press reports read.

Soon, the news came of the arrest of both former army commander Gen. Zuniga and his accomplice, Navy chief Juan Arnes Salvador. They are charged with terrorism and armed rebellion against national security and sovereignty. Minister of Government of Bolivia Eduardo del Castillo said the authorities would ask the prosecutor's office to review the case for other crimes that could be incriminated to the rebels.

The same evening saw a huge crowd of people in front of the government building, chanting slogans in support of President Arce. The head of state addressed the audience and thanked them for "firmly supporting the constitutional order." "I want to thank you for mobilizing quickly," Arce said, not forgetting to expressed gratitude to the "friendly states" that condemned the coup attempt. And those were Cuba, Peru, Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Panama, Argentina, Iran, and the EU. Honduran President Xiomara Castro has even called an emergency meeting of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) to discuss things in Bolivia.

Luis Almagro, Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), also said that his agency would support the Bolivian authorities. Meanwhile, Almagro's hypocrisy was obvious as it was him and the Washington-controlled OAS that acted as instigators of the Bolivian coup in 2019. Back then, President Evo Morales was removed from power, and so the current situation’s roots should be precisely looked for in 2019.

The United States and its subordinate OAS were "concerned" about Bolivia’s alleged presidential election "fraud" in October 2019. This was the "reason" for the army to take to the streets, and for President Evo Morales, who was supposed to be re-elected, to leave the country and escape the massacre. Who was so uncomfortable with Evo Morales after all? This first-ever Indian native at the country’s helm is known to have passed a law prescribing to make all the untold mineral wealth state property. As a result, transnational companies lost their right to exploit the Bolivian subsoil, which they had been previously doing for decades.

But the key modern wealth of Bolivia has been its Uyuni salt marsh with the world's largest lithium deposits, as claimed by the media. And what is lithium today? A critical mineral to produce batteries used in electronic gadgets and e-vehicles. The rapidly-developing IT industry would not exist without lithium, making it a strategic resource of our time. And President Evo Morales’ government decided to bar foreign companies from developing lithium deposits as per the previously imposed predatory rules.

A while after the 2019 coup, Evo Morales himself said that those behind it were the United States and the West while seeking to regain access to lithium and other natural resources in Bolivia. Hence, small wonder that novice coupist Gen. Zuniga urged to arrest Evo Morales, whom the current conspirators targeted along with President Arce.

Then, in 2019, coup’s underlying reasons became clear to everyone right away. Washington needed to return Bolivia to the "herd" of obedient Latin American countries, ensuring direct access to its natural resources that Morales dared declaring a national asset. Moreover, he has been a worthy successor of Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez’ ideas, and a friend of Russia. And Washington has long made it a routine to do away with people of this league on the continent.

But the 2019 success of the United States turned into a prompt failure in 2020. The raised-to-power "interim president" Jeanine Agnes was not long in demonstrating her true colors and the side she favored. She issued a decree relieving responsibility of the military and the police for murders while dispelling countrywide mass rallies by supporters of ousted President Morales. And so, Agnes's own days in office had been numbered.

The early election of October 2020 held "under the auspices" of the OAS to allegedly replace those that it regarded as "wrong", saw a convincing landslide by Luis Arce, a member of Evo Morales' Movement Towards Socialism (MAS). And things got finally back to normal in Bolivia, making lithium once again inaccessible to multinational corporations as key beneficiaries of all the local coups.

And the last drop making the US cup run over might have been President Luis Arce’s visit to Russia to engage in this year’s St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). Arce had talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and not just as part of the venue but at the Konstantinovsky Palace in Strelna, which indicated the level of trust between Moscow and La Paz. That day, the Russian leader referred to bilateral relations as developing “on a solid foundation of respect for each other’s interests.” In turn, Arce thanked Putin for both his support and the two countries’ joint projects. Among other things, the heads of state discussed issues related to the Latin American country's accession to BRICS.

The question is, who benefits from the coup? All the explanations and rationales have been plain to see. Regaining the richest reserves of lithium and other natural resources of Bolivia, throwing the country off its course of rapprochement with Russia, preventing its entry into BRICS — these are the ends Washington pursues as it has seduced the Bolivian military into yet another coup.