Bolivian president Evo Morales was back in La Paz on Wednesday after several European governments allegedly closed airspace over concerns that U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden was on board the president's plane.

The Bolivian president was en route to Bolivia from a summit in Moscow, where he suggested that his country could give asylum to Snowden. Morales' plane eventually landed in Vienna, Austria after the Bolivian government said France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal refused to allow the plane through their airspace. 

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After a voluntary check by Austrian customs officials, it was determined that Snowden was not on board.

After his arrival back in La Paz on Wednesday night, Morales said that the incident was an "open provocation toward a continent, not just a president." He placed the blame solely on the United States and Bolivia's UN ambassador accused the White House of sending orders to its European allies to "kidnap" Morales.

"North American imperialism uses its people to terrify and intimidate us," Morales said during a boisterous welcoming party at La Paz's El Alto International Airport. "I just want to say they will never frighten us because we are a people of dignity and soveriegnty."

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The White House did not comment on Bolivia's assertions on Thursday, but U.S. government officials did confirm that they have had contact with various countries regarding Snowden. Snowden is still believed to be in a Moscow airport as asylum options dwindle.

Several Latin American leaders voiced support for Morales and condemned the incident, calling it a "grave offense to the entire region." Members of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) said on Wednesday that they hold an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the incident. The Organization of American States (OAS) said it would also discuss the incident further.

Argentinian president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner said the European airspace incident had "vestiges of colonialism" and was humiliating to all of South America. Ecuador's president, Rafael Correa, said the incident was an "affront to all of [Latin] America." Correa had earlier in the week discussed allowing Snowden to request asylum in Ecuador.

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Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff also expressed their concerns and expressed solidarity with the Andean nation.  Maduro said the incident "shows the level of madness and desperation that the [U.S.] empire has reached."

In response, the French foreign ministry apologized to Bolivia over the incident, saying it was caused by "the late confirmation of permission for President Morales' plane to fly over territory."  French president Francois Hollande said that he granted permission for the plane as soon as he knew President Morales was on board. 

The incident comes on the heels of U.S.-European Union trade talks and increased tension over revelations that the U.S. intelligence community has been spying on European governments and citizens.  Hollande has encouraged the talks to be delayed until talks over the U.S. intelligence operations on the continent can be thoroughly addressed.

Reach Executive Producer Colin Hale here. Follow him on Twitter.