The elected president of Colombia, Abelardo de la Espriella, backed by the United States, said on Sunday that he would cut diplomatic ties with the communist island of Cuba and the government that runs Nicaragua with an iron fist, once in power.
The elected president of Colombia, Abelardo de la Espriella, backed by the United States, said on Sunday that he would break diplomatic ties with the communist island of Cuba and the government that rules Nicaragua with an iron fist once in office.
‘In my government, there will be no ties with tyrannies,’ said the hard-right representative on social media, who is set to take office on August 7. Announcing the closure of 15 consulates and 14 embassies in total, the future head of state specified that this measure would only involve breaking relations with two countries, ‘Cuba and Nicaragua.’
Narrowly victorious in the last presidential election, Abelardo de la Espriella had received support from American leader Donald Trump during the campaign.Colombia and the United States, two historic allies, are going through unprecedented diplomatic tensions since the start of Donald Trump’s second term, which saw multiple clashes with the outgoing leftist, Gustavo Petro.
According to Petro, Abelardo de la Espriella “answers directly to the U.S. State Department.” He also criticized what he called Trump’s “interference” in national politics due to his explicit support for de la Espriella.
In Nicaragua, the Parliament and electoral authority are moving towards a reform that would ban the opposition from elections, as President Daniel Ortega, in power since 2007, wants. Washington has strongly condemned this plan.
Regarding Cuba, relations with the United States have seriously worsened in recent months, with Donald Trump repeatedly threatening to take control of the island.Abelardo de la Espriella entend également rouvrir une mission diplomatique à Jérusalem et faire suspendre l’installation de l’ambassade colombienne dans les Territoires palestiniens, une initiative de Gustavo Petro.Abelardo de la Espriella also plans to reopen a diplomatic mission in Jerusalem and to halt the Colombian embassy’s move to the Palestinian Territories, an initiative started by Gustavo Petro.
Bogota is expected to close its embassies in Algeria, Haiti, Barbados, Hungary, Senegal, Ethiopia, and South Africa, among others. In Italy and France, for example, the embassies will be merged.
The elected president justified these changes for budgetary reasons, saying he wants to save money or strengthen security funding.
