On July 8th, local time, Daniel Garcia, the Colombian Ambassador to the United States, returned to Washington and held a press conference to announce five points of cooperation aimed at repairing bilateral relations. On the same day, McNamara, the Acting Consul General of the U.S. Embassy in Colombia, also planned to return to Bogotá, with the U.S. expressing its desire to improve bilateral relations. This move came just days after the mutual recall of ambassadors from each other’s countries triggered diplomatic crisis on July 3rd.
It is reported that last month, Colombian President Petro accused U.S. Secretary of State Rubio of participating in a right-wing alliance, intending to overthrow Colombia’s leftist government. Following this accusation, both countries recalled their diplomats for consultations.
On July 3rd, the U.S. State Department announced the recall of its temporary Consul General in Colombia, which was promptly reciprocated by Petro, who also announced the recall of his Ambassador to the U.S., Daniel Garcia, and emphasized Colombia’s commitment to advancing bilateral agendas.
The Colombian Ambassador to the U.S., Daniel Garcia, denied any involvement by the U.S. in the actions against Petro’s government.
Following Garcia’s return to the U.S., he explicitly stated that despite existing differences between Colombia and the U.S., Colombia would prioritize restoring diplomatic channels and maintaining open dialogue to promote the development of bilateral relations. After consulting with President Petro, Colombia proposed engaging in specific areas including drug trafficking and extradition, immigration, trade, alternative energy, and the Haitian crisis. It also denied claims of U.S. involvement in overthrowing Petro’s government.
The U.S. also expressed its desire to improve bilateral relations.
On the same day, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kris Kristofferson made a statement at a press conference, expressing hope to enhance relations with Colombia and establish closer cooperative mechanisms. Later that evening, McNamara, the Acting Consul General of the U.S. Embassy in Colombia, also arrived in Bogotá.
(CCTV Zhao Miao, Deng Xuemei)