De la Espriella sends his Minister of Commerce to the United States to seek the suspension of tariffs on Colombia

The president of Colombia, Abelardo de la Espriella, continues his effort to achieve a temporary removal by the United States of the tariffs it charges on imports from Colombia. This Tuesday, the head of state has ordered his Minister of Commerce, Mauricio Gómez Amín, to travel to Washington to lead this task. He has also stated that he has spoken with the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and added that the government of that country, with which he has aligned, has “full willingness” to study the possibility. “I reiterated my request for the temporary suspension of the tariffs affecting Colombian products,” the ultra wrote about his phone call with Rubio.

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In De la Espriella’s post, shared on his social networks, besides informing about the order he gave to Gómez Amín, he said he had thanked Rubio for the aid the United States has sent to address the emergency triggered in the western part of the country after the earthquake on August 10. “I also reaffirmed our determination to strengthen the historic and transcendental alliance between Colombia and the United States,” added the one who now leads one of the Latin American governments most aligned with Donald Trump’s policies.

Last Saturday, De la Espriella also reported that he had spoken directly, in a 10-minute phone call, with Trump, to whom he made the same request to lift the tariffs, even if temporarily. “Our entrepreneurs are facing very difficult times,” said De la Espriella, who said the American was “extremely warm” in the conversation. Even then, the Colombian thanked the aid to address the emergency caused by the earthquake, amounting to more than 26 million dollars, as well as the rescue teams, which, along with those sent by Israel, Ecuador, and El Salvador, have been the only ones Colombia has accepted.

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Tariff impositions have been one of the most aggressive pressure tools implemented by the Trump Administration against the whole world. Colombia, one of the country’s great historical allies in South America, was not spared. The country, like at least 50 other countries, faced a universal tariff of 10%, which on July 26 increased to 12.5% for most products, although some of the largest exports, such as coffee and coal, are exempt. A possible suspension of the tariffs would be a very favorable gesture towards the government led by De la Espriella, who in his 11 days in power has repeatedly expressed his intention to get closer to the U.S. Executive — a country of which he is also a citizen —.

In less than two weeks of government, De la Espriella has dedicated himself to thawing relations with the United States, which went through a rough period during Gustavo Petro’s administration. Thus, the lawyer announced the country’s entry into the Shield of the Americas, the crime-fighting strategy promoted throughout the continent by the United States, and has aligned with the North American power by offering unconditional support to the Government of Israel — for example, by recognizing the sovereignty of the Jewish State over the Golan Heights, despite the contrary position of the United Nations that Colombia had maintained. All these concessions may work in De la Espriella’s favor to achieve tax relief at a time of crisis after the earthquake that devastated much of the country.

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