Newly elected Colombian President Abelardo Gabriel de la Espriella is eager to retake his country’s position as the U.S.’s foremost partner in Latin America, but the road isn’t easy.
Colombia has long been considered the U.S.’s closest partner in Latin America. This partnership faced one of its biggest challenges in 2022, when the leftist former guerrilla Gustavo Petro took the presidency, vowing to take a much different approach to tackling armed groups. Petro’s “total peace” initiative, seeking to focus on negotiations and addressing root causes rather than armed engagement, triggered violence from both leftist guerrillas and drug cartels, exploding across his presidency. This, along with his belligerent approach toward President Donald Trump, led to a nadir in U.S.-Colombian relations.
