Hello all:

I'm working on a project about the 1932-35 Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay. Among the reasons for the war, it seems that the most agreed-upon one was Bolivia's desire for access to the Paraguay River in order for it to move commerce (specifically oil and gas) via the Paraná River to the Atlantic Coast. But Bolivia already was established in the northern Chaco region, where Puerto Suárez and Puerto Quijarro sat on the Paraguay River, just across from the Brazilian city of Corumbá. (There's even a port there today, Puerto Jennefer, on the Tamengo Canal b/t Suárez and Quijarro, that has access to the Paraguay River.)

Why on earth did Bolivia need to possess the Chaco region to gain access to the Paraguay River if it already had access to it in its back yard? Today, there are enormous barges plying the waters from Corumbá/P. Suárez/P. Quijarra to points south. Was it not as navigable back in the 1930s?

Another question:

Contrary to past popular opinion, it's now widely discounted that Standard Oil (on the Bolivian side) and Royal Dutch Shell (on the Paraguayan side) were puppetmasters behind each country's entry into the war, yet I still see some contemporary accounts suggesting that these oil companies held some sway in pushing for war. (In fact, Standard Oil and Bolivia had severely strained relations during the war, and Bolivia kicked the company out of the country shortly after the war concluded.) Is there any evidence that Standard and/or Shell pushed for the conflict because of imagined (yet ultimately nonexistent) oil/gas reserves in the Chaco?

Any links to sources would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!