Newly elected Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz has restored full diplomatic relations with the United States after a 17-year break.

Paz, 58, made the announcement Saturday after his inauguration.

"We're going to establish those relations," Bolivia's new center-right leader, alongside U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, said during a press conference.

"The country we inherited is devastated … morally and materially indebted, with endless lines for fuel and empty markets."

"Bolivia is rejoining the world, never again isolated. Never again will the country be held hostage by an ideology; ideology doesn't put food on the table," he added.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a statement said Paz's victory "marks a transformative opportunity for both nations" to work on investment, immigration, security, and other matters.

Landau in a social media post celebrated the news.

"Our countries have been estranged for 20 years and I'm thrilled, on behalf of President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to usher in a new era of cooperation and partnership for the good of both our peoples," Landau wrote Friday on X.

Paz responded to Landau's message, "What a pleasure to have you in our little wonder, Deputy State Sec. Thank you for joining us in the rebirth of Bolivia."

Paz inherits an economy in shambles after 20 years of rule by the Movement Toward Socialism Party, founded by charismatic former President Evo Morales.

The party had its heyday during the commodities boom of the early 2000s, but natural gas exports have sputtered, and its statist economic model of generous subsidies and a fixed exchange rate has collapsed.

With U.S. dollars scarce and chronic fuel shortages, a majority of voters chose Paz to lift them out of the economic crisis. He pitched major reforms but at a more gradual pace than right-wing candidate Jorge "Tuto" Quiroga, who advocated an International Monetary Fund bailout and fiscal shock program.

Paz also announced after the election that his government will cooperate with all international organizations on security matters, including the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which Morales expelled from Bolivia at the end of 2008.

Newsmax Wires contributed to this report.

• Rodrigo Paz Sworn in, Ending 20 Years of One-Party Rule in Bolivia
• Bolivia's First Conservative President in 20 Years Promises Warmer US Ties