President Donald Trump said on Jan. 26 that he is imposing retaliatory measures against Colombia after it turned away two military flights deporting illegal immigrants from the United States.
Trump suggested that Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s actions threaten U.S. national security, and he is directing his administration to impose emergency 25 percent tariffs on all imports from Colombia, which will rise to 50 percent in seven days.
Trump also wrote that he will issue a travel ban and immediate visa revocations on Colombian government officials “and all allies and supporters,” adding that visa sanctions on all party members, supporters, and family members of Colombian government officials will also be applied.
Other penalties announced by Trump include enhanced U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspections of Colombian nationals and cargo on “national security grounds,” along with various other banking and financial sanctions.
As of Jan. 26, no official executive order had been issued on tariffs, travel bans, or visa revocations.
Petro, a former member of the socialist 19th of April guerrilla movement, then warned, “Do not demand that I accept deportees from the US, handcuffed and on military aircraft.”
The exchange between Petro and Trump on tariffs happened hours after the Colombian president confirmed earlier on Jan. 26 that he had blocked military flights from the United States that were carrying deported Colombian nationals.
The United States, he said, must first set up a protocol “for the dignified treatment of migrants” before it receives them.
“Let our people plant corn that was discovered in Colombia and feed the world,” he said on X in a lengthy post.
Trump, also critical of Petro’s comments, confirmed that two repatriation flights coming from the United States with illegal immigrants with criminal records were not allowed to land in the Latin American country.
“This order was given by Colombia’s Socialist President Gustavo Petro, who is already very unpopular amongst his people,” he wrote. “Petro’s denial of these flights has jeopardized the National Security and Public Safety of the United States.”
The Trump administration has also sent four deportation flights to Mexico, according to a statement from the White House on X. The Mexican government accepted those flights, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, despite reports that the country had blocked a plane.
The flights set a new record for deportations to the nation in a single day, Leavitt said.
Before taking office, Trump had warned both Mexico and Canada that his administration may impose a 25 percent tariff on goods being sent to the United States if either country does not move on securing borders with the United States, ending illegal immigration, and stopping the trafficking of drugs such as fentanyl.
Trump also floated a 10 percent additional tariff on China if the Chinese regime does not curb the production of fentanyl precursors.
