Trump anticipates better relationship with Colombia under new leader
US President Donald Trump said he anticipated a much improved relationship with Colombia after the electoral victory of his preferred candidate, Abelardo de la Espriella. Trump said suspended US coffee tariffs against Bogotá would be reviewed and that the migration cooperation framework would be renewed.
Trump's remarks on Tuesday followed preliminary counts showing Espriella took the presidency with 51.3% of the vote. The US president confirmed he had spoken to Espriella by phone Monday night and that a White House visit would be arranged in the coming weeks.
The most concrete item Trump raised was a 30% punitive tariff applied to Colombian coffee during the Petro administration. The tariff was imposed after a dispute over Colombian migrants returned to the US. « Working with Espriella will be more productive for our common goals, » Trump told reporters. Colombia's coffee growers federation welcomed the move as « a major relief. »
Espriella's transition team announced that Plan Colombia security assistance would also be renegotiated. Opposition candidate Iván Cepeda has challenged the results; the national electoral committee will publish certified figures on Friday. The Colombian peso strengthened 1.8% against the dollar and the COLCAP equity index rose 3.1%.
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