Colombia president-elect to close 14 embassies and cut ties with Cuba, Nicaragua

Colombia's president-elect, Abelardo de la Espriella, has announced plans to close 14 embassies, sever diplomatic relations with Cuba and Nicaragua, and restructure the country's foreign missions after taking office on August 7.

In a video shared on social media on Sunday, De la Espriella said the first phase of the overhaul would involve closing Colombian embassies in Algeria, Azerbaijan, Barbados, Cuba, Czechia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Haiti, Hungary, Malaysia, Nicaragua, Romania, Senegal and South Africa.

He said Colombia needed diplomacy that was "modern, efficient, and at the service of national interests", instead of what he described as "politicking and bureaucracy."

"We cannot maintain such a costly structure that does not produce concrete results for the country," he said.

De la Espriella said Colombia would continue relations with most of the affected countries through concurrent representation, with ambassadors serving from diplomatic missions elsewhere in their respective regions.

"These decisions do not mean breaking diplomatic relations with those countries (...) except with Cuba and Nicaragua. In my government there will be no ties whatsoever with tyrannies," he said.

The president-elect also announced that his administration would halt plans to open a Colombian embassy in Palestine, saying the mission had never begun operating. He added that around 15 consulates would also be closed.

According to De la Espriella, the changes would allow Colombia to expand its diplomatic presence in countries offering "real strategic opportunities."

He also reaffirmed his campaign pledge to reopen Colombia's embassy in Israel, based in Jerusalem.

De la Espriella further said he would ask the House of Representatives to move his August 7 inauguration from Popayán to Cali, arguing that volcanic activity in south-western Colombia could disrupt flights and affect the ceremony's logistics.