Bogota/Washington (Reuters)-Colombian President Gustavo Petro avoided an economic disaster at the last minute, after diplomats from his government and the US reaching a deportation flights agreement, but the Colombian business community asked on Monday (27) That the question is dealt with more calmly, with Colombians lamenting the cancellation of consultations to obtain visas from the US.
US President Donald Trump had threatened to punish Colombia with tariffs and sanctions for refusing to accept military flights carrying deported, part of his wide repression of immigration.
But in a statement at the end of Sunday, the White House said Colombia had agreed to accept immigrants and that. Colombian Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo said separately that the country’s presidential plane was ready to carry deported.
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The Ambassador of Colombia in the USA, Daniel García-Peña, a longtime diplomat and former Peace Commissioner, was fundamental for the resolution of the dispute at the end of the night, according to a source of the Colombian Foreign Ministry of Foreign Affairs, after discussions “ very tense ”.
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Asked if Trump had used Petro as an example for other countries, a White House source with knowledge of the subject said, “Totally. Yes. Countries have an obligation to accept repatriation flights ”
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“The United States are simply sending back the criminals Colombia sent to the United States,” the source added.
Petro’s conviction to the use of military aircraft, saying that the deported ones were being treated as criminals and that their government is “the opposite of the Nazis”, seemed to irritate Trump more than similar discussions with Mexico and Brazil.
The confrontation between Petro and Trump, in office a week ago, occurred through inflamed publications on social networks, with Petro no X, and Trump on Truth Social.
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The measures announced by Trump, including a 25% rate on all Colombian products, which would increase to 50% in a week, and Banking and Financial Emergency Sanctions of the Treasury, would have had a “huge impact” on the Colombian economy, Bruce said MAC MASTER, President of the Andi Business Association.
“It was very worrying how the president approached the problem because he was not aware of all the consequences that would have for the country,” Mac Master told Reuters.
“It’s as if Colombia had raised her hand and said, ‘I want to be part of the fight, please include me.’ Well, they included and learned how we could lose a lot, ”said Mac Master, adding that leaders from Brazil and Mexico dealt with the issue better.
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The US is Colombia’s largest commercial partner, largely due to a 2006 free trade agreement, with a $ 33.8 billion trading current and a $ 1.6 billion commercial surplus in favor of the US , according to US government data.
The cancellation of visa consultations at the US embassy in Bogota thwarted many people, who told Reuters that they received emails saying that the consultations would be rescheduled.
The rigorous visa process for Colombians to go to the US, including as tourists, can take years and generate large expenses for those who need to travel to Bogota for various appointments at the Embassy.
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“We hope the President will fix this,” said Diosa Camacho, who traveled from the eastern city of Bucaramanga. Camacho said he had been in the visa process for over a year.
Valentina Forero said her family has been in the lawsuit for two years and, although she wants the deported to be treated with respect, she would like the fight to have been treated differently.
“They should have discussed this between the two governments and not included people,” she said. “It was not diplomatic.”
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The US State Department did not respond to a request for commentary at first, nor Petro’s office or the Colombian Foreign Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
(Report by Oliver Griffin, Luis Jaime Acosta, Camilo Cohecha and Javier Andres Rojas in Bogota and Nandita Bose in Washington)
