UPDATE
Jan 27, 2025 12:30 AM CST
Hours after President Trump announced tariffs on Colombia to punish the South American country for refusing to accept military deportation flights, the US claimed victory in what the AP refers to as a "showdown." Late Sunday, the White House press secretary announced that the "Government of Colombia has agreed to all of President Trump's terms, including the unrestricted acceptance of all illegal aliens from Colombia returned from the United States, including on US military aircraft, without limitation or delay." As a result, she said the tariff orders would not be signed, but other consequences including visa restrictions and enhanced customs inspections would remain in place until the first deportation flight is accepted by Colombia. For its part, Colombia said in a statement that the "impasse" with the US had been "overcome."
Jan 26, 2025 2:37 PM CST
Colombia announced on Sunday that it will not accept military deportation flights from the US unless conditions change, with President Gustavo Petro saying in a series of online posts that the migrants from his nation are not criminals. President Trump responded by announcing he'll impose tariffs of 25% on all Colombian goods coming into the US, as well as other sanctions, the New York Times reports. "These measures are just the beginning," Trump posted on Truth Social, after the first two flights to Colombia were rejected. "We will not allow the Colombian Government to violate its legal obligations with regard to the acceptance and return of the Criminals they forced into the United States."
The US is Colombia's most important trading partner and security ally, per the Washington Post. "I cannot make migrants stay in a country that does not want them; but if that country sends them back, it must be with dignity and respect for them and for our country," Petro wrote. "We will receive our fellow citizens on civilian planes, without treating them like criminals." He pointed out that more than 15,600 US citizens are living in Colombia illegally and said he won't launch raids and return them to their home country in chains. His government, Petro said, is "the opposite of Nazis."
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The sanctions include a travel ban and visa revocations for Colombian government officials, their allies, and supporters, per the Post. The Trump administration also plans to impose banking and financial sanctions, per the Times. No other nation has refused the flights, but some have raised questions. Brazil asked for an explanation about the "degrading treatment" of deportees on a flight Friday. Minerals, oil, metals, and coffee make up most of Colombia's exports to the US, per CNN. Because importers pay the tariffs before often passing them on to consumers, the new tariffs could increase the already rising price of coffee in the US. (More President Trump stories.)
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