Milei sent army planes to Bolivia: humanitarian aid or military interference?

The Argentine government confirmed the dispatch of Hercules aircraft to Bolivia amid the most serious political crisis the neighboring country is experiencing, sparking a controversy that has divided the region: while Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno framed it as a gesture of solidarity, former President Evo Morales and Congressman Juan Grabois accused Javier Milei's government of militarily intervening in an internal conflict to support a government that, they claim, represses the Bolivian people.

The government justified the operation as "humanitarian aid".

Argentine Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno confirmed the dispatch of a Hercules aircraft to Bolivia amid the crisis gripping the government of President Rodrigo Paz Pereira , besieged by massive protests from farmers, miners, teachers, and rural sectors demanding his resignation. "Argentina has contributed a Hercules aircraft to transport food supplies—Bolivian food—to bypass the blockades erected by those who sympathize with Evo Morales," Quirno stated in an interview with Eduardo Feinmann on Radio Mitre.

Bolivian Foreign Minister Fernando Aramayo also participated in the radio conversation and publicly expressed his gratitude for the support: "I ask Foreign Minister Quirno to convey the Bolivian people's thanks to President Milei, because in times of tension like these, Argentina's provision of Hercules aircraft for the transport of food and humanitarian aid demonstrates this level of alignment and solidarity," Aramayo stated.

Quirno also confirmed the existence of "a very consolidated group of countries that think similarly" that supports the Bolivian government, made up of Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay and Peru.

Morales: "They have transported police and military personnel on those planes."

The Argentine government's version of events clashed head-on with the accusations of former Bolivian President Evo Morales , a fugitive from justice in his country, who accused Milei of going far beyond humanitarian aid. "They transported police officers on planes sent by Milei. Military personnel too, to Santa Cruz, to Potosí. The police had no equipment to combat the protests and arrived from Argentina, on Hercules aircraft sent by Milei," Morales asserted in statements to Radio 10.

The former Bolivian president maintained that President Paz himself had acknowledged the operation: "President Rodríguez himself acknowledges it, 'Thank you, Milei, for sending planes for humanitarian reasons,' he says," Morales pointed out, adding that there is "information and photographs that prove that these Hercules aircraft unloaded boxes with riot control materials, but these planes are mainly used to move military troops and police towards the seat of government."

Morales also denounced the existence of an alleged "Operation Condor 2026 ," which he claimed was being promoted by Donald Trump and implemented by right-wing governments in the region, including Milei's. In this context, he described the situation in Bolivia as "a popular uprising" to defend the Constitution, natural resources, and basic services.

Grabois: "We already saw this movie in 2019"

From Argentina, Congressman Juan Grabois harshly criticized the national government on social media, drawing a direct parallel with the arms shipments sent by Mauricio Macri 's government during the 2019 Bolivian crisis. "Milei is starving the Argentine people, but he sends military planes to support a government that represses the Bolivian people and calls it 'humanitarian aid,'" the legislator wrote.

Grabois was emphatic in linking the two episodes: "We already saw this movie when the Macri government sent weapons for the 2019 coup." The congressman also expressed his solidarity with the former Bolivian president: "Solidarity with the Bolivian people and with our brother Evo Morales. The Greater Homeland will not surrender."

Bolivia in crisis: more than 100 arrested and roadblocks in six provinces

Bolivia is experiencing one of its most serious crises since Rodrigo Paz Pereira took office. The protests, which escalated significantly in early May 2026, have brought together miners, teachers, farmers, transport workers, and sectors aligned with Morales, who remains a fugitive with an arrest warrant issued against him on charges of child trafficking.

The riots on Monday, May 19, resulted in over 100 arrests, police vehicles set ablaze, damage to public offices and businesses, and attacks on civilians and officers. On May 14, miners detonated dynamite near the presidential palace, and a group attempted to force their way inside. The tension also spread to the city of El Alto , with road blockades in six of Bolivia's nine departments causing severe shortages of food, fuel, and medicine.

Despite the escalating unrest, the Bolivian government ruled out declaring a state of emergency on Tuesday. Minister of Government Marco Antonio Oviedo was categorical: "There is no possibility of a state of emergency. We are not going to declare it," although he warned that "tough and strict" measures would be applied against those responsible for the disturbances, attributed to groups from Chapare , Morales's political stronghold in the department of Cochabamba. Presidential spokesman José Luis Gálvez justified the refusal by stating that a state of emergency could "aggravate the situation" by giving ammunition to the protesters.

The precedent of 2019 and the debate on regional sovereignty

The controversy surrounding Operation Hercules is not new in Argentine foreign policy. In November 2019, during Macri's administration, Argentina sent riot control munitions to Bolivia in the context of the crisis that ended with Evo Morales' resignation from the presidency, an episode that Alberto Fernández 's government later described as inappropriate and which led to judicial investigations. The parallel drawn by Grabois raises a question that the ruling party does not answer: if in 2019 the shipment of equipment was questioned as interference in an internal matter, what changes today in the political and ideological framework, beyond who receives the support?

What is verifiable is that the Milei government took an active stance in the Bolivian conflict, confirmed the operation, and framed it within a regional alliance with governments of similar ideological orientation. This humanitarian narrative clashes with Morales's accusations regarding the content and true purpose of the flights, claims which, according to the former Bolivian president, are supported by photographic documentation that has not yet been independently verified.

The Pentagon said on Tuesday that it would reduce the number of US soldiers stationed in Europe to levels last seen before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The defence department said the decision to reduce the number of brigades on the continent from four to three was “the result of a comprehensive, multi-layered process focused on US force posture in Europe”. It marks the latest move by the Trump administration to pressure European allies to take more responsibility for military defence, although critics warned that it would weaken Nato deterrence against Russia. The announcement comes following a week of confusion after the US abruptly cancelled the planned rotation of 4,000 US troops to Poland, blindsiding officials in Warsaw. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell on Tuesday said the delayed deployment to Poland was temporary and came as a result of the decision to reduce the overall number of Brigade Combat Teams in Europe. He said the “final disposition” of US forces would be “based on further analysis of US strategic and operational requirements, as well as our allies’ own ability to contribute forces towards Europe’s defence”.

The US deployed additional troops to Europe following the Russian annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula in 2014 and sent more troops after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Jim Townsend, deputy assistant secretary of defence for Europe and Nato policy during the Obama administration, said the deployments “are based on our concept of the threat to Europe, and the role the US needed to play in Europe with force structure, to deter the Russians”. “If we are pulling troops out willy-nilly, this pell-mell retreat, what messages does that send?” he said. During Donald Trump’s second term, US officials have sought a dramatic overhaul of the Nato alliance, urging European leaders to shoulder more responsibility for the continent’s defence. Vice-president JD Vance earlier on Tuesday said the US had not decided whether the 4,000 troops would eventually be sent to Poland. “Those troops could go elsewhere in Europe. We could decide to send them elsewhere,” he said.

The Pentagon said earlier this month that it intended to withdraw forces from Germany, whose leader Friedrich Merz’s critical comments about Trump have caused a rift with the US. However, Trump does plan to attend the G7 leaders meeting in France in June despite these tensions, the White House confirmed on Tuesday. US General Alex Grynkewich, the most senior Nato military officer, said on Tuesday that he did not immediately expect the US to draw down more than 5,000 soldiers from its European footprint. “It’s all that I’m expecting in the near term,” Grynkewich told reporters. Alongside the 4,000 soldiers whose planned dispatch to Poland has been cancelled, the Pentagon said earlier this month it was curtailing the scheduled deployment of a battalion equipped with long-range missiles to Germany. There has been growing concern in some European capitals that Washington could decide to reduce American forces in Europe more significantly. Trump has repeatedly demanded that European countries take more responsibility for defending the continent. “We are not talking about pulling every single American troop out of Europe. We are talking about shifting some resources around in a way that maximises American security,” Vance said on Tuesday. “I don’t think that’s bad for Europe. That’s encouraging Europe to take more ownership.”

The Pentagon said the reduction would encourage “Nato allies to take primary responsibility for Europe’s conventional defence” and added that it remained in “close contact” with Warsaw. Polish deputy prime minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz wrote on social media on Tuesday that US defence secretary Pete Hegseth had confirmed in a phone call the US “commitment to Poland’s defence and security remains unchanged”. He added the Pentagon was preparing a new plan for the deployment of American forces across Europe. “The process of repositioning US Army forces and assets in Europe is ongoing but no decision has been made to reduce American military capabilities in Poland,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

The President of the National Assembly rejected the narratives generated on digital platforms and affirmed that the Executive Branch will not tolerate any irregularities, regarding the deportation of Colombian citizen Alex Saab to the U.S.

The president of the National Assembly (AN) of Venezuela, Jorge Rodríguez , stated this Tuesday that the National Government will not give "quarter" to any form of irregularity, illegality or acts committed against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , and revealed links of citizen Alex Saab Morán, who was recently deported to the U.S., with agencies of that country since 2019.

When addressing the deportation of the Colombian citizen, Rodríguez made a strong revelation, stating that Saab's situation is "a matter between him and US agencies" and promising to make public the type of relationship he maintained and maintains , directly implicating US entities in this controversial case and its narrative.

"In short, since 2019, and we're only finding this out now, the Alex Saab issue is about him and American agencies. And you'll all soon find out what kind of relationship Alex Saab had and has with those American agencies ."

He added that “Saab is a Colombian citizen. The Constitution clearly establishes that Venezuela cannot obstruct or impede a deportation process if there is any type of criminal activity in another country or any type of action or relationship between the agencies ,” he emphasized.

He reaffirmed that neither Alex Saab nor the 257 Venezuelans rescued from the CECOT detention center in El Salvador have immunity or impunity ; if they committed crimes, stole money, or planned other offenses, "they must face the law and be prosecuted," emphasizing that Venezuela is serious about fighting corruption and impunity , unlike the hypocrisy shown by the U.S. on these issues.

He also addressed the accusations circulating online regarding his diplomatic efforts to secure Saab's release in 2023. In this regard, he recalled that his work as a mediator with the U.S. administration also made possible, in 2025, the repatriation of Maikelys Espinoza and the rescue of 252 Venezuelan migrants who were being held in El Salvador —facts that, he claimed, are often omitted from social media.

Rodríguez denounced the "gigantic theft" perpetrated by sectors of the opposition with Venezuelan money abroad , referring to the CITGO dividends in New York and the Monómeros case , demonstrating external complicity in the diversion of the nation's resources.

He directly accused Juan Guaidó of orchestrating a "witch hunt" to misappropriate millions of Venezuelan dollars , funds that were distributed to former members of the National Assembly from 2015-2020, pointing to the inaction of international organizations in the face of these events.

" Whoever steals, whoever betrays, whoever violates the high condition of trust placed by the people of Venezuela or by the Government of Venezuela, must be prosecuted according to the laws of the Republic ," Rodríguez declared.

He recalled the words of the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, about the betrayal of former General Arnaldo Ochoa , calling it a " stab in the back to the homeland ," to emphasize that the current struggle in Venezuela is a " problem of morality, principles and honor " against those who betray the trust of the Revolution and are defended from abroad.

During the plenary debate, the legislator questioned the opinion matrix that seeks to instrumentalize the very complaints issued by the Executive to attack the authorities who expose these grievances .

On this point, he condemned the existence of "600 paid staff" dedicated to disinformation , a tactic that seeks to discredit the efforts of the Venezuelan State to repatriate its citizens and combat corruption , insinuating the external financing of these destabilizing campaigns.

The President of the Venezuelan National Assembly also denounced the hypocrisy of the U.S., pointing out the double standard of the external narrative , which attempts to discredit Venezuela's actions while protecting those who threaten public assets .

He criticized the fact that senior US officials do not question the crimes of those released during prisoner exchanges.

In this regard, he reaffirmed the country's sovereignty to handle its diplomatic affairs without external interference and recalled his role as the State's representative in negotiations with Washington, such as the exchange in the Caribbean last December, the repatriation of Alex Saab, the recovery of the Espinosa Bernal girls and the return of 252 migrants from El Salvador.

He reiterated the commitment of the political organization and the Government to combat internal deviations , maintaining that any official, including mayors belonging to the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), who engages in economic or drug trafficking crimes, will face imprisonment.