After Brazil complained about the mistreatment of Brazilian immigrants deported from the United States to Brazil, Colombia refused to accept military planes from the U.S. carrying deported immigrants, triggering a furious reaction from President Trump, who on Sunday (26) announced a series of tariffs and sanctions against the country, which has long been one of the U.S.’s main allies in Latin America.
The United States threatened to impose a 25% tariff on all Colombian imports and increase it to 50% in a week, Trump said on social media, if Colombian President Gustavo Petro does not agree to accept flights with Colombian immigrants deported from the U.S.
Initially, Petro struck back. In a social media post, he announced retaliatory tariffs of 25% on U.S. imports to Colombia and in another longer post, he stated that these tariffs would reach 50%.
Addressing Trump directly, Petro also questioned whether the American president was trying to overthrow him.
“You don’t like our freedom, that’s fine,” Petro said. “I don’t shake hands with white enslavers.”
However, after hours of tension with Bogotá, the White House said that Colombia agreed to accept immigrant flights, including on military aircraft, and that the tariffs would be suspended.
“Today’s events (Sunday, 26) make it clear to the world that America is respected again,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt in a statement on Sunday night. “President Trump will continue to fiercely protect the sovereignty of our nation, and he expects all other nations in the world to fully cooperate in accepting the deportation of their citizens illegally present in the United States.”
The Colombian Foreign Minister soon confirmed that flights for deportees from the U.S. had resumed.
Trump clearly did not hesitate to act in the harshest way with Colombia, to serve as an example for the rest of Latin America, which must be ready to receive flights with deported immigrants from the U.S., and for other trading partners, against whom the government will not hesitate to use tariffs as a tool of intimidation.
Fulfilling the Promise
Trump’s victory over Colombia capped off the first week of his presidency, during which he used intimidation as a device to stamp his power in the United States and drastically change the country’s position abroad.
On Sunday, for example, the Trump administration launched a deportation blitz in Chicago that will spread across the country in the latest highly visible sign of its desire to achieve results quickly.
Source: CNN