Update on January 26, 2025, at 11:56 pm EST: On Sunday night, the White House said Colombia had agreed to the “unrestricted acceptance” of migrants from Colombia and would allow them to be returned to the country “including on US military aircraft, without limitation or delay.” The White House said it would not impose tariffs or sanctions unless the agreement was violated but visa restrictions will stay in place until “the first planeload of Colombian deportees is successfully returned.”
President Trump has ordered an increase in tariffs on Colombian goods and visa restrictions on Colombian officials after Colombia turned away two US military planes carrying migrants being deported from the US.
Trump announced a 25% increase on all Colombian goods coming into the US and said they would be raised to 50% in one week. He also ordered visa restrictions on Colombian government officials and their “allies and supporters,” enhanced inspections on shipments coming from Colombia, and other unspecified sanctions.
“These measures are just the beginning. We will not allow the Colombian Government to violate its legal obligations with regard to the acceptance and return of the Criminals they forced into the United States!” the president wrote on Truth Social.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro responded to Trump in a series of posts on X and said he rejected the plane because the Colombian migrants were treated as criminals. “In civilian planes, without being treated like criminals, we will receive our fellow citizens,” he said.
Petro also said he would send his presidential plane to pick up the migrants in a more “dignified” manner but also announced a retaliatory tariff increase of 25% on all US goods being imported to Colombia.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio quickly followed up on Trump’s order by imposing the visa restrictions. “Measures will continue until Colombia meets its obligations to accept the return of its own citizens. America will not back down when it comes to defending its national security interests,” the State Department said in a statement on the restrictions.
Colombia has long been a partner of the US and is designated a major non-NATO ally. The aggressive deportation policy could clash with one of the Trump administration’s other goals in Latin America: pushing back on Chinese influence in the region. Honduras has threatened that if the Trump administration follows through on a mass deportation plan to the country, US troops based in Honduras could be kicked out.
