The President of the United States, Donald Trump, announced today that he will impose strong sanctions on Colombia. Among them, he will increase tariffs on exports from that country by 25% and revoke the visas of his counterpart Gustavo Petro and all officials of his government. This measure is taken in retaliation for not allowing two military planes carrying deported migrants to land hours earlier.
"I have just been informed that two repatriation flights from the United States, with a large number of illegal criminals, were not allowed to land in Colombia. Colombian migrants cannot be treated as criminals," Petro expressed in a statement. Trump justified the sanctions by arguing that Colombia's action questioned his new immigration policy and endangered the national and public security of the U.S.
The U.S. president announced that he would increase tariffs to 25% on "all goods" from Colombia entering the country and warned that this rate could reach 50% within a week. This decision would have a significant impact on the Colombian economy, especially in key sectors like coffee exports, which amount to about $2 billion a year to the United States.
Trump's order is based on the alleged responsibility of the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, whom he accuses of being responsible for the country's refusal to allow the landing of the planes with the deported migrants. Trump described Petro as an unpopular socialist president among his people.
These measures are in addition to the temporary closure of the visa issuance office at the U.S. embassy in Bogotá, a decision reported by several Colombian and Spanish media outlets. According to sources, the closure would be effective starting next Monday the 27th, in response to Petro's refusal to allow the landing of the aircraft with the deported Colombians.
In his statements, Petro criticized that undocumented individuals were sent on military flights instead of civilian flights. These tensions between the two countries mark a new chapter in their bilateral relations and could have significant consequences in the near future.
