The president of Peru, Keiko Fujimori, will not attend the presidential inauguration ceremony of Abelardo de la Espriella in Colombia, scheduled for August 7 in the city of Cali. In her representation, Foreign Minister Carlos Espá will travel, as stated in Supreme Resolution No. 249-2026-PCM published today, Thursday, August 4, in the official gazette El Peruano.
The document, signed by Fujimori and countersigned by Prime Minister Luis Galarreta, authorizes the trip of the Minister of Foreign Affairs to Santiago de Cali from August 6 to 8, 2026, in order to participate in the official events prior to and the presidential inauguration ceremony. Travel expenses include airfare for USD 1,264 and per diem for USD 1,110.
The resolution indicates that Peru’s participation in the ceremony is conducive to strengthening high-level political-diplomatic dialogue between both countries, with a view to relaunching bilateral ties and prioritizing strategic issues such as the fight against transnational organized crime and the deepening of economic-commercial bonds. The text also mentions the need to define a calendar of activities aimed at the full reactivation of bilateral dialogue mechanisms for the second half of 2026 and the first half of 2027.
The Supreme Resolution establishes the official trip of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carlos Espá, to Cali, Colombia, from August 6 to 8, 2026, and details his per diem expenses.
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“In that sense, bilateral meetings will be held with the high authorities of the Republic of Colombia, with the purpose of consolidating the relaunch of the bilateral relationship at the highest level, strengthening cooperation between both countries, and promoting border integration in favor of the development and well-being of their populations, particularly those located in the border area,” the document reads.
During Chancellor Espá’s absence, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office will be in charge of Galarreta Velarde.
The inauguration of De la Espriella, lawyer and leader of the Defensores de la Patria party, breaks with tradition by being held outside of Bogotá, at the Santiago de Cali University Arena, with a scheduled start time of 3:00 PM. Confirmed attendees include King Felipe VI of Spain.
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Keiko Fujimori and Abelardo de la Espriella
The absence of Fujimori in Cali replicates the same decision that De la Espriella made on July 28. The Colombian president-elect also did not attend the inauguration of his Peruvian counterpart and instead sent the president-elect’s vice president José Manuel Restrepo as head of the delegation. De la Espriella had anticipated that he would not leave the country during his term and that it would be the members of his cabinet who would attend to international commitments.
Despite that reciprocal absence, both leaders have publicly built a close relationship before taking office. At the beginning of June, they held a video call in which they encouraged each other ahead of their elections. “I love that the region is turning. It’s just you and me missing. So we have to put a lot of emphasis and a lot of strength into it,” Fujimori told him. In that same conversation, the Peruvian president set the fight against crime as the axis of the future bilateral relationship: “Abelardo, we have an enormous challenge. First, to fight against transnational and organized crime. And there I ask you not only to count on Peru, but also to be able to count on you. The battle is very tough.”
