Mr Arce had previously responded as soon as word of the unusual troop movements emerged, by denouncing the deployment as “irregular.” Posting on X, formerly Twitter, he also called for “democracy to be respected”.

“We cannot allow, once again, coup attempts to take the lives of Bolivians,” he said from inside the palace, surrounded by government officials, in a video message sent to news outlets.

An hour later, Mr Arce announced new heads of the army, navy and air force. He said the troops who rose against him were “staining the uniform” of the military.

“I order all that are mobilised to return to their units,” said the newly named army chief José Wilson Sánchez. “No one wants the images we’re seeing in the streets.”

Videos showed troops setting up blockades outside the government palace.

The alleged coup attempt comes after months of extreme tension between Mr Arce and his mentor and predecessor, former president Evo Morales.

Mr Morales, 64, was ousted in November 2019, after 13 years in office, following allegations of voting irregularities as he ran for an unconstitutional third term. His close ally and former economy minister Mr Arce was elected president in November 2020.

Disgraced and in exile in Mexico, Mr Morales, a former rabble-rousing union leader and grower of coca – a mild traditional stimulant in the Andes but also the key ingredient in cocaine – had appeared a political corpse.