Speaking during a ceremony recognising Colombia’s new military leadership in Bogota, De la Espriella said some prisons had become centres for criminal operations.

"It is regrettable that Colombia's prisons have ceased to be places of confinement to become dens - dens of criminality - universities of crime from which extortion and threats are made, murders are ordered and terrorist structures are directed," he said.

The president said the planned mega-prisons would be built with private-sector participation as part of his government ’s strategy against organised crime.

"I remain unwavering in my commitment to build maximum-security mega-prisons to confine the most dangerous terrorists in the country. These projects will be carried out with the private sector," he said.

The plan forms part of a wider campaign against armed groups linked to drug trafficking , illegal mining, smuggling and fuel theft.

De la Espriella also warned officials and private individuals against holding unauthorised talks or communications with armed groups. He said his government would continue extraditing people wanted by other countries.

"This republic will never kneel before crime again. Absolutely no one is authorised to establish communication with terrorist groups. Any official or private individual who does so will be brought before the courts," he warned.

According to De la Espriella, security forces have neutralised 21 ringleaders and arrested more than 500 people during the first days of his government.

He said authorities had also seized 13 tonnes of cocaine and destroyed 83 drug-production sites.

Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella has ordered authorities to begin operations in Barranquilla to identify and deport foreigners living in the country with irregular status, with those involved in crimes as the first priority.

De la Espriella announced the measure during a security council meeting on Sunday, August 23, directing Migration Colombia and the Police to begin operations this week.

"We will begin the operations. This is a position I have held during the campaign and which I will implement from the Presidency of the Republic. Not only the foreigners committing offences, crimes, but also those who have broken the rules to be here," De la Espriella announced.

The president said authorities would initially focus on foreigners involved in criminal activity before targeting those who have failed to regularise their migration status.

"First, those committing crimes. Second, those who have not regularised their situation and, before long, will have to be deported," the president said.

De la Espriella also repeated his "Colombians first" position, saying he would take responsibility for the policy.

"I will not accept illegal migration here. First Colombians, second Colombians and third Colombians," De la Espriella said. "That is a political decision and I will assume it, and it is an administrative decision; I will assume it," he added.

The president said the operations would apply to irregular migrants regardless of nationality, warning that he would not accept "illegal immigrants, wherever they come from".

De la Espriella also linked organised crime with drug trafficking , illegal mining, extortion and smuggling, arguing that the activities form part of the same criminal structure.

The move signals a tougher approach to migration policy following years of regularisation programmes that largely focused on Venezuelans.

Studies estimate that about 2.8 million Venezuelans live in Colombia, with more than 500,000 remaining without regular migration status.

"It is undeniable that the capacity deployed by my government in public health and the territorial presence of healthcare was not used due to sectarianism and ignorance," he stated in an address from Bogota.

Petro also accused the government of allowing an Israeli 'military intelligence' operation on Colombian territory during the emergency and questioned the experience of rescuers sent by Israel.

"Do not bring those who knock down buildings with live children inside the buildings. They do not know about this; they come for something else," he said.

Petro also questioned why the Benkos Bioho Hospital Ship, intended to provide healthcare in coastal and riverine communities, remained in the port of Buenaventura for seven days during the emergency.

"The ship could have dropped off health teams along the coast and even gone up the rivers of the Pacific," Petro noted, adding that during his administration it had carried out 7,882 operations along the coastline.

According to Petro, his government had left 9,000 million pesos, about 2.9 million dollars, for an immediate response following an earthquake. He said the destination of those resources remains unknown.

He also criticised the government's response during the first 100 hours of the emergency, which he described as 'fundamental'.

"The inability of the incoming government's handover engineered by Abelardo turned those hours into a disaster, a disaster greater than the one that already existed," he added.

Petro also questioned the government's rejection of some international aid and asserted that the decision to 'politicise it' had consequences for the number of victims.

The official earthquake toll stands at 319 dead, 4,469 injured and 260 missing, while 364 people have been rescued. Material damage includes 151,995 homes damaged, 30,803 destroyed and 302 collapsed buildings.

Speaking in Barranquilla, De la Espriella said an initial technical assessment had estimated the scale of damage from the earthquake, which mainly affected Valle del Cauca and Risaralda.

"A private firm modelled direct physical losses in Choco, Valle del Cauca, Risaralda, Quindio and Caldas, close to 30 trillion pesos, roughly 24.5 trillion in buildings and 5.5 trillion in infrastructure . Imagine the scale of the disaster," he detailed.

De la Espriella said Choco, where the epicentre was located, needs "special consideration and a Marshall Plan" to address historical debts and rebuild damaged homes and buildings.

He also highlighted a World Bank loan secured to support the emergency response.

"In record time, the Ministry of Finance activated the disbursement of the first tranche of a World Bank loan for US$200 million," he said.

According to the president, the funds are available "to meet the most pressing needs of the victims of this natural disaster", and he expressed his gratitude to the international organisation for the speed of its response.

De la Espriella also announced rent subsidies, relief on public services and a programme called "Miracle Housing" for affected families.

"We will carry out the census, profile each case and deliver concrete solutions for all Colombians affected. My government will shoulder this responsibility with austerity," he asserted.

The quake has destroyed at least 26,945 homes and damaged more than 127,557 properties nationwide, according to the report presented by De la Espriella. At least 289 people have died, 4,187 have been injured and 143 remain missing.

Across Colombia, the earthquake has left 23,392 homes destroyed and 127,608 damaged, while 287 people have died and 4,147 have been injured, according to Sunday's update from the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management. Survivors in Cali say rebuilding will be difficult and could take years, but they remain determined to start again.

"This is the room where we are staying these days, while the Mayor's Office gives us assistance for lodging," he said. Pino Cordoba said the Medrano Neighbourhood Community Action Board had registered him as a victim and photographed the damage, but authorities had yet to visit.

"We are waiting for the Mayor's Office to come and see me," he said. He recalled escaping moments before his home collapsed after feeling the earthquake while having hot chocolate and bread.

"When I felt the tremor, I went out," he said. "As I was going up the stairs, I saw the building over there collapse... Thank God I had already got out."

Pino Cordoba said he has since relied on relatives and friends for food and other support while awaiting assistance.

The earthquake struck western Colombia on Monday, with its epicentre near San Jose del Palmar in Choco. Authorities say 14 people have died and 139 have been injured in the department, with 468 homes destroyed, Viory reports. Nationwide, 287 people have been killed, 3,975 injured and 378 remain missing, according to the latest government figures.

"To clarify, the Secretariat of National Defence rescue brigade was not approved by the Colombian Government ," Sheinbaum said.

"It is not a conflict ; there is no problem," she added, explaining that Colombia had requested food and medicines but required certification for rescue teams.

Mexico is continuing to send humanitarian aid aboard Hercules aircraft, including food and medical supplies requested by Colombian authorities. Sheinbaum said the military rescue brigade remained ready to deploy if authorised, noting that its members had participated in rescue operations in 98 countries.

According to the Mexican government, the brigade comprises 255 personnel from the Army, Air Force and National Guard, along with 20 K-9 teams.

Colombia has limited the entry of international rescue teams, although Mexico's Topos Azteca and two US-provided teams have been authorised. The earthquake has killed at least 265 people, injured 3,494 and left 496 missing, according to the latest figures. More than 25,000 families have been affected.

Mexico has also sent humanitarian aid to Colombia following the earthquake, with the government saying 58.5 tonnes of food, water and medicines would be delivered between 12 and 14 August. Juan Carlos Valencia, president of the Risaralda Departmental Assembly, thanked Mexico for its support. Meanwhile, queues continue at registration points as authorities assess damaged properties and document the losses of affected families.

The procedures were moved to Palmira after the Forensic Medicine office in Cali was evacuated because of the risk of structural collapse.

The National Unit for Disaster Risk Management said 250 bodies have arrived at Forensic Medicine. Of those, 227 have been identified and 189 handed over to their families.

"It is overwhelmed; the forensic service in the city of Cali is overwhelmed because of the earthquake. So all the bodies have been sent here to Palmira, and that has meant it takes a long time to hand over our loved ones," said the son of a person who died in the earthquake.

The man said he had been waiting since early in the day to receive his relative’s remains.

"It is worrying, because we want to give a Christian burial, and with the pain being so strong here, you do not want your relative to be there in these conditions ."

He said he had been told the previous night that the body would be ready by Thursday morning, but he was still unable to receive it.

"Last night they told me—I was there until late last night—they told me that today at 09:00. I have just arrived to claim the body, but they say it is not on this first list of the morning, so I have to wait to see when they can hand it over to me."

Meanwhile, citizens have travelled to areas affected by the earthquake to deliver humanitarian aid.

"It comes from the heart, and all of us at this time have to unite as a country to help all these people who really have nowhere to sleep and no food," said one Cali resident taking part in the effort.

The Office of the Attorney General set up service points in Palmira and Tulua to speed up procedures after the Cali forensic office was evacuated.

The 7.4-magnitude earthquake, with its epicentre in San Jose del Palmar, caused damage across Choco, Valle del Cauca, Risaralda and Caldas. As of Thursday, the UNGRD reported 273 people dead, 3,824 injured and 377 missing.

The president said the emergency would allow the government to establish a "Miracle Fund" to channel domestic and international resources towards rebuilding hospitals, schools , homes, roads and airports damaged by the earthquake.

"I have decided to make use of the economic emergency, a mechanism provided for by our Constitution so that we can face this crisis as appropriate," he said.

De la Espriella said the disaster had struck at a particularly difficult time for Colombia's public finances, citing the country's high level of debt .

The government is also preparing temporary assistance for those affected, including rent subsidies, tax and financial relief, support with utility bills and aid for small businesses and traders.

That is how Cali resident Jonathan Molina described the moment a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Colombia, leaving at least 111 people dead and causing widespread destruction.

Molina said he watched homes begin to collapse as residents rushed to escape.

"Tough, to be honest. People were running. I only saw pieces of the houses falling," he said.

Another resident, Estiven Moreno, said the earthquake caused extensive damage across Cali.

"So far, 20 structures have been reported as completely collapsed, 27 affected. Hospital networks are also affected," he noted.

Moreno added that patients had to be evacuated from buildings at risk of collapse.

"At the Los Colores building, many patients were able to be brought down and treated on the pavements because there was a chance that structure would collapse," he said.

As the shaking stopped, residents joined emergency crews to remove rubble while rescuers searched for people trapped beneath collapsed buildings.

According to the Colombian Geological Service (SGC), the earthquake had its epicentre in San José del Palmar, Chocó.

President Abelardo de la Espriella said the disaster has left 111 people dead, 87 injured, 1,575 homes damaged and 61 buildings collapsed nationwide.

She said Mexico was prepared to provide assistance following the damage caused by the earthquake.

"And, of course, all the support that the people of Colombia may require, if necessary, we will be there," she said.

Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs contacted Colombia's Foreign Ministry to reiterate its willingness to provide support. No Mexican nationals had been reported among those affected.

According to the Colombian Geological Service (SGC), the earthquake had its epicentre in San José del Palmar, Chocó, at a depth of approximately 103 kilometres. It was the strongest earthquake recorded in Colombia in the past decade.

More than 70 deaths have been reported nationwide. Pereira, Manizales and Cali were among the cities affected, while tremors were also felt in Venezuela , Ecuador and Panama.

Images show damage in central and western parts of the country, including Cali, Manizales, Pereira and Quibdó. In Quibdó, a four-storey building collapsed, trapping people inside, while authorities assess the damage and emergency services work to determine the full extent of the impact.

The situation remains developing, with injuries and serious damage to buildings reported. This is the report from Carolay Morales in Colombia, from Global South Voices Network.

The structure, also known as the Cachimbal tollbooth, was in the final stage of construction under the Nuevo Cauca concession at kilometre 60 of the dual carriageway between Popayán and Santander de Quilichao.

The explosion caused severe damage to the newly built infrastructure. Two security guards suffered minor injuries, according to the Army.

Authorities attributed the attack to FARC dissidents led by the figure known as “Iván Mordisco”, who operate in the region.

The incident came a day after Abelardo de la Espriella took office as President of Colombia after pledging a tougher approach to armed groups and drug trafficking .

Hours earlier, a police officer was killed in the northern department of Cesar during a drone attack involving explosives against a police station.

Petro thanked the security forces responsible for his protection, defended his record and said he had never sought to remain in power beyond his constitutional term.

"Thank you for accompanying me, soldiers, for looking after me. I believe you leave better than when I entered. So, long live free Colombia!" he said.

Petro became Colombia's first democratically elected left-wing president in 2022.

His departure coincided with De la Espriella's inauguration at the USC Arena of the Universidad Santiago de Cali, marking the first presidential inauguration held outside Bogotá in decades.

Speaking at a press conference in Bogotá on Monday, Petro said the election result was influenced by what he described as an organised system of algorithmic manipulation.

"What there was, was electoral fraud — algorithmic, systematic, and over an enormous volume of votes. And in favour of Abelardo de la Espriella, without the popular will being involved, and the method used was darkness," Petro alleged.

He also claimed foreign actors financed and supported the alleged manipulation.

"Foreigners used foreign money to carry out the electoral fraud that imposes a president who did not win the elections . Goodbye national sovereignty," he added.

Petro maintained that Historic Pact candidate Iván Cepeda was the rightful winner of the election.

"We are facing fraud and an undoubtedly deep institutional problem. And it is the swearing-in of an illegitimate president, because the one who won is named Iván Cepeda," he said.

The president also warned about the growing use of software and algorithms to influence elections, claiming similar technology had been used in other countries.

"All this development of electoral fraud based on the handling of software and algorithms (...) Any election in the world , any country, can be manipulated through this kind of software that they can sell. It is a business (...) Five cases in a row of manipulation by Israeli software, of popular elections in different parts of the world," he asserted.

Petro argued that Abelardo de la Espriella's inauguration would mark a loss of Colombia's democratic independence.

"As of 3:00 in the afternoon on Friday: colony. We lost 250 years of independent history; we went back to the beginning, only that the country that rules is no longer the king of Spain, but a genocidal criminal of the world named [Benjamin] Netanyahu, with an arrest warrant from the criminal courts that he himself wants to destroy to avoid his trial," he added.

Petro made the remarks four days before leaving the Casa de Nariño ahead of De la Espriella's inauguration 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.

"Bolivar's five republics are in the process of losing their independence and becoming a viceroyalty again. Perhaps Colombia more than Venezuela ," he said.

Petro alleged that De la Espriella was aligned with US interests rather than the Colombian electorate.

"Here in Colombia, the presidency of the one who is going to arrive on August 7 [Abelardo de la Espriella] is owed not to the people of Colombia, who voted mostly for another person, but rather he obeys the United States Department of State directly," he said.

De la Espriella narrowly defeated left-wing candidate Ivan Cepeda in the 21 June presidential run-off, securing 49.66 per cent of the vote against Cepeda's 48.70 per cent, according to the initial official count. US President Donald Trump publicly endorsed De la Espriella during the campaign.

Petro also criticised plans to hold the 7 August presidential inauguration at a military or police facility in Cauca, insisting such installations would remain under his authority until the end of his term.

Residents recorded the moment several inmates climbed onto the roof of the prison in an attempt to flee while officers opened fire to stop the escape.

The incident prompted a large-scale operation involving the National Police and the Dialogue and Order Maintenance Unit.

According to initial reports, the inmates took advantage of the unrest caused by the riot to reach the roof of the facility before escaping, bypassing the prison's security measures.

Authorities have not confirmed how many prisoners escaped.

However, unofficial reports suggested that more than 30 inmates may have fled. Police set up patrols and checkpoints across Popayan as the search continued for those who remained at large.

Speaking during a televised Council of Ministers meeting on Tuesday, Petro repeated his claims that fraud influenced the June 21 presidential run-off, in which De la Espriella defeated Historic Pact candidate Ivan Cepeda.

The president alleged that election records from overseas voting, particularly in the United States , had not been delivered.

"They did not deliver the tally sheets from keyholders for overseas voting, especially those from the United States, because that is where the fraud is. And I cannot accept a president, and that is why I will not be anywhere on August 7 nor shake his hand... it is fraud, which I believe amounts to 848,000 votes, which is the number from the additional census that I reported," Petro said.

He also accused the opposition campaign of using hundreds of thousands of automated social media accounts with international financial backing.

"They used half a million bots... machines broadcasting through paid networks [vote buying], and there is international support, paid. That costs a fortune, tens of millions of dollars. It requires the backing of foreign governments to do it," he declared.

Petro further claimed that private Israeli intelligence companies were linked to the alleged financing, referring to recordings attributed to former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez.

"Netanyahu publicly, through the gentleman drug trafficker, former president of Honduras, Orlando Hernandez, said it in some recordings that are evidence before the courts," he said.

The latest remarks add to a series of fraud allegations Petro has made since February 2026.

Colombia's National Civil Registry and election observers have said they have found no verifiable evidence to support the president's claims.

In a video address shared on social media on Tuesday, De la Espriella alleged that Petro and Historic Pact candidate Ivan Cepeda were trying to overturn the election result.

"Petro and Cepeda launched their plan B to remain in power no matter what. And they want to do it through a coup d'etat," he warned.

De la Espriella claimed the situation had worsened in recent hours, accusing Petro of exceeding his authority by rejecting the election outcome and declaring Cepeda the winner.

"Cepeda, playing the good cop, is calling for civil disobedience so as not to recognise the votes that, in democracy, in freedom, the Colombian people cast at the ballot box to make me president of all," he added.

The president-elect appealed to Colombia's armed forces to uphold the Constitution and defend the country's democratic institutions. He also urged the international community to remain "watchful, attentive, and supportive of us."

De la Espriella further alleged that Petro and Cepeda were seeking to avoid future investigations.

"Added to this is the fear that both Petro and Cepeda have of the revelations to come, not only regarding all the corruption that ran rampant during these four dark years of government , but also the legal consequences their ties to narcoterrorism will bring, both with criminal groups inside Colombia and with the cartel led by the narco-dictator Nicolas Maduro," he said.

Political tensions increased after Carlos Alonso Lucio, a member of De la Espriella's transition team, said Petro should "be tried" and could face extradition to the United States if requested by US authorities.

De la Espriella later announced the suspension of the presidential transition process with the outgoing administration.

Finance Minister and transition coordinator German Avila subsequently halted transition meetings, saying remarks made by members of the incoming administration had jeopardised the process.

Colombia occupies a position no other South American country shares: it has coastlines on both the Pacific and the Caribbean, sitting right beneath the southern approach to the Panama Canal. That geography does a lot of the economic heavy lifting. A container leaving Buenaventura on the Pacific or Cartagena on the Caribbean gets to North America, Europe, or Asia without the extra transit time that landlocked or single-coast neighbours like Bolivia, Paraguay, or even Pacific-only Peru and Chile have to absorb.

Then there's the equatorial position, near-constant daylight and rainfall for agriculture, four mountain ranges (the three Andean cordilleras plus a few outlying massifs) creating dozens of microclimates packed close together, and a slice of the Amazon in the south. Put it together, and you get one of the most naturally diversified resource bases in the hemisphere: coffee and flowers from the temperate highlands, oil and coal from the eastern plains and Caribbean basin, gold, nickel, and emerging copper from the Andean belt, plus a services and tourism sector growing fast around Bogotá, Medellín, and the coast.

Economically, Colombia is Latin America's fourth-largest economy, and it's built one of the region's more resilient middle-income economies over the last two decades: steady rather than spectacular, which is probably why it gets overlooked next to Brazil's scale or Argentina's boom-and-bust drama.

The numbers right now

2026 has been a mixed year for Colombia, and any honest account needs to say so. Growth has recovered from a weak 2023 (0.6%) to a steadier path: most forecasters now put 2026 GDP growth somewhere between 2.2% and 2.8%, with some houses (BBVA, Allianz Trade) projecting acceleration toward 3.5% in 2027. Inflation has re-accelerated though, to around 5.5% in core terms, which pushed the central bank to raise rates back above 11%. A very public dispute between the Finance Minister and the central bank in early 2026 has also raised questions about monetary policy independence for the first time since the 1991 constitution.

The fiscal picture is the bigger concern. Colombia suspended its fiscal rule in mid-2025, and the deficit has run as high as 6–7% of GDP, pushing public debt above 60%. Foreign direct investment inflows, roughly USD 6.6 billion in 2025, grew only modestly and remain below their post-pandemic peak. None of this is catastrophic by regional standards, but it's real, and it's why Colombia still trades below investment grade with some rating agencies.

Look past the headline numbers, though, and the picture brightens: a record coffee harvest, oil reserves that have outperformed expectations, remittances up over 8% to nearly USD 9 billion, double-digit growth in service exports, and a private consumption base (73% of GDP) that's proven remarkably sticky even through the inflation spike. Reserves sit near USD 66–67 billion, about ten months of import cover, which gives the country real shock-absorption capacity.

How Colombia stacks up against its neighbours

Brazil remains the region's undisputed heavyweight: roughly ten times Colombia's economy, the deepest capital markets, the most mature industrial base, including in defence (Embraer, a nuclear submarine program, satellite launches). That scale comes at a cost, though: it's harder and slower to enter as a mid-sized foreign investor, and Brazil's own fiscal and political cycles are at least as volatile as Colombia's.

Peru offers a more investor-friendly mining concession framework on paper, and it edges out Colombia in raw gold and copper output. But its parallel economy is arguably in worse shape. Peru's own data shows that of roughly 200 tonnes of gold exported in a recent year, less than half could be traced to a verifiable legal origin, and violence tied to informal mining keeps escalating, including a widely reported 2025 massacre in the Pataz region. Colombia's formalisation approach, incomplete as it is, gets cited internationally as a more structured model than Peru's indefinite "in-process" registry.

Chile is the clean, stable comparator: best sovereign credit rating in the region, most predictable rule of law, a copper-driven economy with a genuine sovereign wealth cushion. It doesn't have Colombia's resource diversity or its dual-coast trade geography, though; Chile's whole economic identity runs through one commodity and one coastline.

Argentina is the highest-variance story in the region right now. A real re-armament and reform cycle is underway (its first new fighter jets in nearly forty years arrived in December 2025), but that comes bundled with a much longer history of currency crises and policy reversals than Colombia has had over the same period.

Mexico , while technically North American, is the other natural comparator for scale and manufacturing depth. But it carries its own concentrated exposure to US trade policy that Colombia, with a more diversified export base, doesn't share to the same degree.

Line them up together and Colombia looks like the balanced generalist of the group. Not the biggest, not the cleanest, not the fastest-growing, but the only one combining a genuinely diversified resource and export base, two-ocean access, and a growth rate that, fiscal noise aside, has been positive and improving for three straight years.

Sectors worth watching

Energy and mining: Oil and coal still anchor export revenue, but copper is the emerging story. Colombia holds an estimated 9.7 million tonnes of underexplored copper resources along the Andean belt, and the national mining agency opened tenders for 14 strategic copper zones in late 2025. Less than 3% of national territory currently carries a mining title, which is either a governance problem or a long runway, depending on where you sit.

Defence and security: Colombia spends more on defence as a share of GDP than any other South American country, and its domestic threat environment (dissident guerrilla factions, organised crime, and growing concern about drone-enabled attacks) has kept demand for counter-UAS, ISR, and tactical equipment structurally high, even as broader procurement slowed under the outgoing administration. Regional analysts expect Colombia's defence market to grow faster than the rest of South America through 2031, off a smaller base than Brazil but with a clearer near-term pull.

Services, tourism, and agriculture: The most consistently positive story in the 2026 data. Service exports and tourism revenue both grew close to 10% year-on-year, and financial services are forecast to be among the fastest-growing sectors in the broader economy.

A new government changes the calculus

Mid-2026 brought the biggest shift in this whole picture. Abelardo de la Espriella won Colombia's presidential runoff on June 21 with just under 50% of the vote, ending the Petro era, and takes office on August 7. His running mate, José Manuel Restrepo, is a former commerce and finance minister, a credible, market-facing figure rather than a political outsider, which matters for how investors are likely to read the transition.

The new administration's platform is pro-business and security-led, built around a few concrete commitments:

Deregulation and tax cuts aimed at four growth engines (hydrocarbons and mining, infrastructure, agriculture, and tourism), including plans to eliminate the financial transactions tax and cut fuel taxes to free up liquidity for businesses and consumers.

A smaller state, with proposals to cut government size by roughly 40% and redirect spending from bureaucracy toward productive incentives.

A reversal on hydrocarbons policy , reactivating oil and gas development after several years of a renewables-first stance that analysts say constrained investment in the sector.

A security-first growth thesis. The incoming government has set an explicit target of 6–7% annual GDP growth, arguing that ending the "Total Peace" negotiations, resuming operations against illegal armed groups, and restoring territorial control will do more to unlock private investment than any single fiscal measure. Whether that growth number is realistic or not, most institutional analysts covering the transition share the underlying logic: that Colombia's discount to regional peers is as much a security-risk discount as a policy one.

Closer alignment with the United States and Israel on security cooperation, including a possible link to Washington's broader regional security initiatives, alongside a more cautious posture toward Chinese investment in critical infrastructure than the outgoing government held.

For defence and security specifically, this is a meaningful inflexion point. A government elected on a mandate to confront rather than negotiate with illegal armed groups, paired with a stated intent to deepen military cooperation with the US and Israel, points toward sustained or accelerating demand for exactly the equipment categories already in structural demand (counter-UAS, ISR, tactical gear, precision capability), with the added tailwind of a government more willing to move procurement through quickly instead of trading it off against social spending, which the outgoing administration often did.

The investor read on this transition has been notably positive. Analysts at the Atlantic Council and elsewhere have framed the election as a likely trigger for the "return of capital" to Colombia, pointing to improved visibility on security, a return toward sound fiscal policy , and renewed US relations as the key drivers, the same three variables that have weighed most heavily on Colombia's investment case since 2022. Colombia held investment-grade ratings and OECD membership as recently as the early 2020s, before the prior administration's fiscal drift; the new government's stated aim is to rebuild that standing.

Nothing here is a sure thing. De la Espriella won by a margin of roughly 250,000 votes out of nearly 26 million cast, and he'll need to build coalitions in a fragmented Congress to pass anything beyond what can be done by decree. But the direction of travel (tax relief, deregulation, hydrocarbons reactivation, and a security posture explicitly designed to de-risk the country for private capital) is the clearest positive catalyst Colombia's investment case has had in years, and it lands directly on top of the structural advantages already covered above.

The honest risk list

Any serious investment case has to sit alongside the real headwinds too: a fiscal deficit that needs credible consolidation, inflation still well above target, a May 2026 election cycle that introduced political uncertainty, persistent security risk tied to illegal armed groups and narco-mining, and structurally low R&D and productivity investment, which the OECD flags as capping Colombia's long-run growth potential at around 2.5% unless addressed.

Why Colombia still makes the case

Colombia isn't the safest bet in South America, and it isn't the biggest. What it offers instead is more specific: a resource base diversified enough to weather single-commodity shocks, a trade geography no other South American economy can replicate, a growth trajectory that's been quietly improving rather than spectacularly booming, and, particularly relevant for defence, security, and commodities operators, sectors where genuine structural demand exists independent of the political cycle.

The countries that look "safer" on paper (Chile for stability, Peru for mining regulation) each trade that safety for something narrower: a smaller economic base, or in Peru's case, a supply-chain integrity problem that may be worse than Colombia's rather than better. Brazil offers scale, but at a cost of entry most mid-sized investors can't easily absorb. Colombia sits in the gap: developed enough to have real institutions and market access, undercapitalised enough that genuine first-mover advantage still exists in mining formalisation, copper, and defence modernisation, and positioned geographically in a way that will matter more, not less, as global supply chains keep looking for alternatives to single-choke-point routes.

For an investor or operator already building relationships on the ground, rather than trying to enter cold, Colombia's combination of resource depth, dual-coast access, and structurally underserved sectors makes a stronger long-term case than its 2026 headline fiscal numbers suggest on their own.

The incoming government is what turns that calculus from wait-and-see to act-now. A pro-business administration cutting taxes, shrinking the regulatory state, and reactivating hydrocarbons is the kind of policy shift that tends to show up in job creation before it shows up in GDP statistics: construction, energy services, tourism, and agriculture are all labour-intensive sectors that respond quickly to lower financing costs and faster permitting. Layer defence spending on top of that: a government committed to confronting rather than negotiating with illegal armed groups will need to buy and maintain more equipment, train more personnel, and build out more domestic industrial capacity through INDUMIL, COTECMAR, and CIAC, all of which pulls in foreign contractors, local suppliers, and skilled labour at the same time. Security spending in Colombia has historically functioned as a de facto jobs and industrial-base program almost as much as a military one.

Put the three together: tax relief and deregulation pulling in private capital, restored security pulling in the foreign investors who were pricing in conflict risk, and defence procurement pulling through its own supply chain of contractors and jobs. This is the first time in several years all three growth levers have pointed the same direction at once. That's the real argument for treating 2026 as an inflexion point rather than just another data point in Colombia's long run of steady-but-unspectacular growth.

The article solely represents the views of Dean Tavakoli, C.E.O of Munimentum Systems Consultancy.

Mexico remains the world's largest Spanish-speaking country by native speakers, with about 138.1 million people speaking Spanish as their first language, according to World Population Review population estimates.

The ranking highlights the global reach of Spanish, one of the world's most widely spoken languages. More than 500 million people speak Spanish as a native language, making it the second-most spoken native language globally after Mandarin Chinese, according to the Instituto Cervantes.

The United States ranks second with approximately 65.5 million Spanish speakers. Although English is the country's dominant language, decades of immigration from Latin America, particularly Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba and Central America, have made the U.S. home to one of the world's largest Spanish-speaking populations. Around 69.5% of Spanish speakers in the U.S. are native speakers, according to World Population Review.

Latin America accounts for eight of the world's ten largest Spanish-speaking populations.

After Mexico and the United States, Colombia ranks third with 53.1 million native Spanish speakers, followed by Spain with 48.9 million and Argentina with 47.5 million.

The remaining countries in the top ten are Peru (30.6 million), Venezuela (29.4 million), Chile (20.2 million), Ecuador (17.5 million) and Guatemala (17 million).

Spanish is the official language in 20 sovereign states across Europe and the Americas and is also one of the six official languages of the United Nations .

The United States is unique among the top-ranked countries because it has no federal official language, yet it hosts the world's second-largest Spanish-speaking population.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the country's Hispanic population has grown steadily over recent decades, driven by both immigration and natural population growth. Spanish is the most widely spoken language after English and is used extensively in education, media, business and public services.

Unlike most Latin American countries, however, a smaller share of the U.S. population speaks Spanish as a native language compared with countries where Spanish is the national language.

The Instituto Cervantes estimates that nearly 600 million people worldwide use Spanish, including native speakers, second-language speakers and learners.

Spanish is the official language of international organisations, including the United Nations, the European Union, the Organisation of American States and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC). It is also one of the most studied foreign languages globally.

Population growth across Latin America, together with the continued expansion of Hispanic communities in the United States, is expected to sustain Spanish as one of the world's most influential global languages in the coming decades.

The mission comes as rescue operations continue in the hardest-hit regions, where homes and infrastructure have been severely damaged. Colombian authorities said the deployment is part of a humanitarian response aimed at assisting Venezuela’s emergency services and helping locate those still missing.

"I have been censored even on social media. The owners of social media platforms have put in place an algorithm so that if my face appears or if my voice appears, it is not distributed and does not reach a larger audience," he said.

The Colombian leader linked the alleged censorship to his outspoken criticism of Israel's military campaign in Gaza, arguing that those opposing what he described as genocide were increasingly being silenced.

“Simply because I opposed a friend of theirs, the genocidal maniac who killed 20,000 babies in Gaza,” Petro said, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Petro warned that the issue extended beyond Colombia, claiming that growing control over digital platforms by private technology companies posed a broader threat to democracy .

“When the private owners of artificial intelligence , and therefore of social media platforms, come together to censor someone who has opposed a genocide, we may be heading toward fascism once again, but this time on a global scale,” he stated.

The president also drew parallels between violence in Colombia and the conflict in Gaza, while criticising what he described as rising racism around the world .

“If a photo of me or my voice appears in any of the videos, the platform has an algorithm to restrict the dissemination of that information,” Petro said. “That is silencing a president of the Republic elected by popular vote.”

His remarks came amid a political dispute involving Gloria Arizabaleta, chair of the House Accusations Committee, who signed a controversial resolution proposing Petro’s provisional suspension over allegations that he improperly intervened in the presidential campaign.

Constitutional experts challenged the move, arguing that only the Senate has authority to suspend a sitting president. Within 24 hours, Colombia’s Inspector General suspended Arizabaleta for allegedly exceeding her powers.

In May, Colombia’s Council of State ordered Petro not to use official channels to support or oppose political parties, after ruling that some of his statements breached rules governing public officials during election periods.

Petro rejected the allegations, saying he had a duty to report alleged crimes against him or members of his administration. Colombia is due to hold the second round of its presidential election on June 21, after no candidate won an outright majority in the first round on May 31.

Far-right lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella will face left-wing Senator Ivan Cepeda, who is backed by Petro’s political movement. Petro is constitutionally barred from seeking re-election and is expected to leave office on August 7.

“The Security Council will make determinations with effective mediation, and ultimately of humanity,” Petro said. “Finding ways for a quick resolution to the wars and conflicts occurring throughout the Middle East region.”

The Colombian leader also criticised Israel's actions in the region, accusing it of seeking to “nullify” Palestine and Lebanon, and called on the United States to help mediate efforts aimed at restoring Lebanon's sovereignty.

Beyond the Middle East, Petro urged an end to the U.S. embargo on Cuba and condemned anti-immigration policies , describing them as discriminatory measures used for political gain.

Colombia's presidency of the Security Council will oversee a month-long agenda that includes a high-level debate on the Middle East titled “Advancing Political Solutions in the Middle East: Mediation and Dialogue for Lasting Peace .”

As council president, Colombia will be responsible for directing the body's programme of work and chairing both formal and informal meetings throughout June.

The country has also scheduled high-level discussions on Women, Peace and Security and Children and Armed Conflict as part of its presidency programme.

Petro further alleged electoral fraud and said he does not recognise the preliminary vote count, while de la Espriella, who led the first round with 43.74% of the vote, called on him to accept the result. Ivan Cepeda secured 40.90%, forcing a second round scheduled for 21 June, when voters will decide the country’s next president after no candidate achieved an outright majority.

Cepeda further argued that proposals put forward by de la Espriella represent a risk, claiming they include the introduction of “mega-prisons” inspired by Central American policies and economic measures similar to those promoted by Argentina’s president Javier Milei. His remarks follow a ruling by a municipal criminal court in Bogotá prohibiting the use of the national team jersey in de la Espriella’s campaign. The second round of Colombia’s presidential election is set for 21 June and will determine the successor to President Gustavo Petro for the 2026–2030 term.

The outcome highlights a deeply polarised political landscape, with voters largely backing candidates from either the political right or left, while centrist contenders failed to gain significant support.

The runoff campaign is expected to focus on issues including security, drug trafficking, economic management, democratic institutions and the legacy of President Gustavo Petro’s government.

Speaking to supporters after advancing to the second round, de la Espriella presented the election as a defining moment for the country.

“This is tyranny or institutionality. The past or the future, complicity or independence and patriotism,” he said. “There is no more room for indifference.”

He also accused his rival of links to criminal groups, describing Cepeda as “a bandit allied with narco-terrorists.”

De la Espriella said that if elected, he would uphold judicial independence, work with local governments regardless of political affiliation, reduce poverty, strengthen security, combat drug trafficking and restore state authority across Colombia.

Cepeda, meanwhile, criticised what he described as foreign involvement in the election after Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa publicly congratulated de la Espriella and criticised the left-wing candidate on social media .

“Foreign governments are meddling in our elections,” Cepeda said.

He also called for greater scrutiny of his opponent’s campaign finances and questioned the scale of spending behind the campaign.

Cepeda argued that the runoff represents a choice between preserving social policies advanced under the current administration and a shift toward a conservative government.

“Mr de la Espriella represents fascism, mafia fascism,” he said, warning that social gains achieved during the current government could be reversed if his opponent wins.

The June 21 runoff will determine whether Colombia continues with the left-leaning political agenda associated with the Historical Pact or moves toward a more conservative, security-focused approach under de la Espriella. With the first-round margin relatively narrow, both candidates are expected to intensify efforts to attract voters whose preferred candidates were eliminated, making coalition-building and voter outreach central to the final stage of the campaign.

This concludes our live coverage of Colombia’s 2026 general election. Stay with Global South World for more updates and information on Colombia’s presidential runoff.

23:30 GMT: Paloma Valencia officially announces her support for presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella ahead of Colombia’s runoff election.

22:30 GMT: With nearly 100% of votes counted in Colombia’s presidential election, Abelardo de la Espriella leads with over 43%, followed by Iván Cepeda with close to 41%, sending both candidates to a runoff to decide the country’s next president.

21:00 GMT: Polls close in Colombia’s 2026 presidential election.

20:05 GMT: After accompanying former president Álvaro Uribe during his voting in Rionegro, presidential candidate Paloma Valencia arrives at her polling station in Bogotá, where she casts her vote in Colombia’s presidential election.

18:05 GMT: Esteban González Pons, head of the European Union’s election observation mission, highlights the international monitoring effort in Colombia’s presidential vote, with more than 140 observers from Norway, Switzerland and Canada deployed across all regions to assess the process under democratic standards.

17:10 GMT: Interior Minister Armando Benedetti oversees the national monitoring centre as authorities track the presidential vote in real time, coordinating with regional governments and overseeing security, mobility and emergency response. More than 122,000 polling stations have been set up to serve over 41 million registered voters nationwide.

16:55 GMT: Presidential candidate Claudia López votes in Bogotá, urging Colombians to turn out in large numbers. Accompanied by her dog “Dulce”, she says she voted “with hope and optimism” for a country with more opportunities for young people and women, adding that the ballot remains the strongest tool to protect democracy and shape the future.

16:45 GMT: Senator Iván Cepeda, from the ruling Pacto Histórico party, casts his vote at Colegio San Lucas in Bogotá’s Kennedy district, where he is joined by dozens of supporters.

16:35 GMT: Journalist and former presidential pre-candidate Vicky Dávila casts her vote in Colombia’s presidential election.

15:00 GMT: Colombia’s Interior Ministry reports 443 complaints of electoral offences registered so far during Sunday’s vote.

14:30 GMT: Vice President Francia Márquez calls on Colombians to head to the polls and exercise their right to vote.

14:25 GMT: Presidential candidate Paloma Valencia calls on Colombian women to make history by electing the country’s first female president, saying “it is our time,” as she appears alongside former president Álvaro Uribe.

14:20 GMT: Presidential candidate Iván Cepeda, in a message to the nation, urged voters to back a future focused on reducing poverty and inequality, protecting natural resources and building a modern, diversified economy. He also emphasised hope over fear and unity over division, calling on Colombians to turn out and vote.

14:10 GMT: Presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella votes in Barranquilla, saying “we will defeat tyranny”.

13:45 GMT: Gustavo Petro casts his vote in Colombia’s presidential election, which will determine his successor for the 2026–2030 term.

13:30 GMT: President Gustavo Petro casts his vote in Bogotá’s Plaza de Bolívar, highlighting the ballot as a popular mandate to choose the leader who will guide Colombia for the next four years. He also reaffirmed electoral guarantees and dismissed past claims about seeking to remain in power or establish a dictatorship.

13:20 GMT: Córdoba Governor Erasmo Zuleta officially opens the electoral day, urging citizens to participate massively, freely and democratically in the presidential vote.

13:00 GMT: Voting gets underway in Colombia, with early lines reported at some of the country’s largest polling stations.

12:30 GMT: Colombia prepares to head to the polls as Bogotá readies key voting sites.

Polls are expected to open in Colombia’s presidential election at 8:00 am local time (13:00 GMT) and close at 4:00 pm local time (21:00 GMT).

What to know

Colombia is heading to the polls this Sunday, May 31, for its presidential election, where voters will choose a new president and vice president. More than 41 million citizens are eligible to vote. If no candidate secures over 50% of the valid vote, a runoff between the top two contenders will take place in the following weeks. Voting is not compulsory, but turnout remains a key factor in determining the outcome.

The election unfolds in a highly polarised political climate, with voters choosing between sharply different visions for the country. Issues such as security , education, economic stability and national sovereignty are at the centre of public debate, reflecting broader concerns about the country’s direction.

Colombian authorities have introduced several restrictions and security measures ahead of the election weekend, including a “ley seca” that bans alcohol sales in many areas, temporary border closures for Colombian nationals on election day, and increased deployments of police and military forces nationwide.

More than 13,000 voting sites have been established across the country, with approximately 800,000 citizens assigned as election jurors and vote counters.

Current polling indicates that three candidates are leading the race: Iván Cepeda from the left, Abelardo de la Espriella representing an anti-establishment right platform, and centre-right candidate Paloma Valencia. Analysts expect Cepeda to qualify for the second round, while competition for the second runoff position remains close between De la Espriella and Valencia.

The campaign period has included allegations of electoral fraud from President Gustavo Petro, alongside criticism of the election management system. However, Colombia’s electoral authorities, including the National Electoral Council (CNE), the Registraduría, and election observer groups, have rejected claims that the voting process lacks transparency.

Authorities have identified more than 200 municipalities as facing elevated risks of electoral violence or fraud, with concerns particularly focused on rural areas. Security concerns remain heightened following the assassination attempt on presidential pre-candidate Miguel Uribe last year.

Voters will also have the option to cast a “voto en blanco”, which is recognised as a formal protest vote rather than a spoiled ballot.

Key candidates & support

Iván Cepeda (Historic Pact)

A prominent left-wing figure, Cepeda has built his campaign around social justice, human rights and structural reform. His candidacy draws on the broader political movement associated with progressive forces in Colombia, appealing particularly to younger voters, urban sectors and those who support a stronger role for the state in addressing inequality. His supporters often frame his campaign within a long history of social struggles, positioning him as part of a project aimed at deepening democratic inclusion. Cepeda is considered one of the leading contenders, with a solid base but facing challenges in expanding his appeal among more conservative and undecided voters.

Abelardo de la Espriella (Defenders of the Homeland)

A right-leaning candidate and well-known lawyer, de la Espriella has centred his campaign on security, institutional order and a tougher stance on crime. He appeals to voters concerned about rising insecurity and those who favour stronger enforcement policies and a more conservative political direction. His message also resonates with sectors calling for balance in governance and sceptical of left-wing reforms. He has gained visibility and support among conservative voters, positioning himself as a competitive candidate in a fragmented field.

Paloma Valencia (Conservative Party)

She gained momentum after securing around 3.2 million votes in a March primary. Positioned as a more “moderate” conservative, she appeals to centre-right voters with a focus on security, institutional order and economic stability. A vocal critic of President Gustavo Petro and supporter of the “No” vote in the 2016 peace deal, she has a solid conservative base, though her polarising profile may limit broader appeal.

Debates and campaign dynamics

The absence of major televised debates in Colombia’s presidential race reflects both strategic decisions by candidates and the highly polarised political environment. Leading contenders have largely prioritised direct campaigning and controlled media appearances over open confrontation, seeking to avoid risks in a fragmented race with no clear frontrunner. At the same time, deep ideological divisions and mutual distrust between political camps have made consensus around debate formats more difficult, limiting opportunities for head-to-head exchanges ahead of the vote.

Political climate and stakes

This election is seen as a crucial moment for Colombia’s democracy, as it navigates deep divisions and competing narratives about its future. Campaign rhetoric has reflected these tensions, with candidates mobilising support around themes of change, stability and national identity.

Security remains a central concern for many voters, alongside economic challenges and questions about governance. The outcome will likely shape Colombia’s domestic and foreign policy direction, particularly in relation to international partnerships and internal reforms.

With no clear consensus among voters and a divided electorate, analysts expect a competitive race that could extend to a second round. The next administration will face the challenge of governing in a fragmented political environment while addressing key issues such as security, inequality and institutional trust.

Ultimately, the election will serve as a test of Colombia’s democratic resilience and its ability to navigate political polarisation while maintaining stability.

Her remarks formed part of a wider message on regional sovereignty, as she criticised external influence, particularly from the United States , and called for unity across Latin America. By pointing to Bolivia’s experience, Quilcué framed the region’s political direction as an ongoing struggle between competing models of governance, while emphasising the need for cooperation to address shared economic and social challenges.

The dispute followed remarks by Petro describing the situation in Bolivia as a “popular insurrection” and a “Bolivian political crisis,” while offering Colombia’s support for a peaceful solution.

“President Petro’s statements are spreading misinformation, making value judgments and implying direct interference in Bolivian internal politics ,” Aramayo said.

He stressed that the move did not mean Bolivia was severing diplomatic relations with Colombia.

Petro later told Radio Caracol that Bolivia was experiencing “extremism” following the ambassador’s expulsion.

The diplomatic row comes amid growing tensions in Bolivia, where protests and roadblocks have disrupted transport and supplies of food and basic goods across parts of the country.

“Colombians have killed each other for entire generations due to revenge, small things, things of no importance, and above all, a lot of social exclusion,” Petro said.

He described Colombia as one of the world ’s most unequal countries and said drug trafficking had fuelled violence and corruption for decades.

Petro later admitted that his administration had failed to fully meet its goals under the Youth in Peace programme, particularly in stopping the recruitment of young people by armed groups and criminal networks.

“This government did not fulfil 100 percent with ‘Youth in Peace’ and more needs to be done,” he said. “Colombia fell into drug trafficking.”

The programme is one of Petro’s flagship social initiatives and aims to provide vulnerable young people with financial assistance, educational opportunities and psychosocial support to prevent recruitment by gangs and illegal armed groups.

Among those attending the event was a participant identified as Daniel, who said the programme should be expanded and protected.

“It is a process that should continue,” he said, adding that it should defend “the rebelliousness of all youth.”

Colombia continues to face violence linked to dissident guerrilla factions, drug trafficking groups and organised crime networks despite ongoing government peace efforts.

This is not a new phenomenon. Looking back two decades, media coverage at the time highlighted a similar stance from former president Álvaro Uribe, who chose to avoid debates framed by confrontation and personal attacks. His argument centred on maintaining a campaign tone free from aggression—both receiving and delivering it. Today, sectors aligned with figures like Senator Iván Cepeda echo comparable reasoning, emphasising direct engagement with citizens over participation in adversarial debate formats.

This ongoing discussion reflects what is happening today, as highlighted by Carolay Morales, a Colombian journalist from Global South Voices. She points out that some political sectors argue it is more effective to speak directly to people in public squares, mass events, and public tours, rather than engage in debates with opponents. This approach prioritises a direct connection with supporters, but also raises questions about the lack of spaces to confront ideas between candidates.

However, this strategy has long sparked criticism. Commentators have argued that bypassing debates transforms political communication into a one-directional exchange, where candidates speak to supporters rather than engage with competing ideas. As noted years ago by Alejandro Gaviria, this dynamic resembles a “preacher and followers” relationship, raising concerns about the lack of dialogue between equals. Without debates, opportunities to challenge proposals, clarify positions, and contrast visions for the country become limited.

The persistence of this approach raises broader questions about democratic practice—not only in Colombia but globally. While campaign styles and political figures evolve, certain strategies remain unchanged. The current election cycle invites reflection on whether debates should be considered an essential component of democratic accountability, or simply one of many optional tools in modern political communication.

He said Cuba was the only country in Latin America and the Caribbean able to produce its own vaccine at the height of the pandemic, adding that the achievement helped save lives, starting with Cubans themselves.

“If a society , in the middle of a global crisis, was able to rapidly produce an effective vaccine, then that society should not be invaded or bombed. It should be applauded and helped,” Petro said.

His remarks came amid renewed tensions between Washington and Havana. On May 1, US President Donald Trump expanded sanctions on Cuba and suggested that the United States could deploy an aircraft carrier near the island.

Cuban officials condemned the move. President Miguel Díaz-Canel described Washington’s position as a “dangerous escalation,” while Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez accused the US of acting with cynicism and hypocrisy.

Petro also pushed for a coordinated strategy to dismantle criminal networks and highlighted energy transition as a pathway to reducing violence and fostering sustainable development. The visit signals a renewed effort to stabilise bilateral ties, revive trade and address long-standing security challenges affecting border communities.

Petro further criticised Noboa over border closures, arguing that the restrictions had pushed more people in both countries towards illegal trafficking networks. He also alleged that criminal groups based in Ecuador were plotting to assassinate him and Senator Iván Cepeda, widely seen as a potential contender in Colombia’s next presidential race.

The remarks add to a growing rift between Bogotá and Quito. Petro said earlier this week that he planned legal action against Noboa over claims linking him to Ecuadorian crime boss Adolfo Macías, known as “Fito”. The diplomatic clash comes amid a worsening trade dispute that began after Ecuador imposed tariffs on Colombian imports, prompting retaliatory measures from Bogotá.

What they said

Petro said the accusations would be dismantled in U.S. legal proceedings and denied any ties to traffickers. Colombia’s embassy stated, “The reported insinuations have no legal or factual basis.” Ecopetrol President Ricardo Roa said the allegations involving the state oil company “lacked all reality or logic.”

He explained that the initiative will be formally presented by Ghana’s president, John Dramani Mahama, before international bodies on March 25. The proposal seeks to classify slavery as "the gravest crime against humanity", aiming to establish a legal and moral precedent within the international system.

Ablakwa also said the international community has not fully acknowledged the gravity of these crimes or held those responsible accountable.

"For more than 300 years, Africans were treated as property, many of them in the most dehumanising and despicable circumstances. Perpetrators are yet to apologise and have not compensated the victims," Ablakwa said.

“It is unfortunate that our friends in the EU and the US have served notice that they will not be voting for this resolution, but the good news is that we are far more than them, and we want to be on the side of justice, on the right side of history ,” he added.