Rubio meets this Tuesday with De la Espriella to seal the rapprochement between the US and Colombia

Bogota.– U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, will meet this Tuesday in Barranquilla with the President of Colombia, Abelardo de la Espriella, in a meeting that seeks to strengthen relations between both countries and advance on issues of security, trade, and cooperation.

The meeting will take place approximately one month before De la Espriella’s inauguration and represents the first visit by a high-ranking official of U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to Colombia during this new political scenario.

One of the main topics on the agenda will be the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime. According to the State Department, Rubio and De la Espriella will analyze new forms of cooperation in the fight against narcoterrorism.

Colombia recently announced its incorporation into the Coalition Against the Cartels of the Americas, an initiative promoted by the United States to coordinate actions against organizations dedicated to drug trafficking and other organized crime structures in the region.

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Another point that will be on the table will be military cooperation. The De la Espriella administration authorized the United States to carry out joint operations against drug trafficking in Colombian territory, although until now there has been no public report on the execution of any of these actions. Washington also approved a $1 billion material aid package to strengthen the country’s security.

Bilateral trade will be another central issue of the meeting. De la Espriella has proposed the possibility of temporarily suspending U.S. tariffs applied to certain Colombian products, currently at 12.5%, as a measure to contribute to the economic recovery following the earthquake that affected the country.

Rubio and De la Espriella will also discuss United States assistance for Colombia’s recovery following the 7.4 magnitude earthquake recorded on August 10, which left 331 people dead. Washington announced 26.5 million dollars in aid to address the emergency.

After his visit to Colombia, Rubio will continue his tour through Ecuador and Peru, as part of Washington’s efforts to strengthen political and security cooperation with the governments of Daniel Noboa and Keiko Fujimori.