Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Saturday sharply criticised Washington after the United States revoked his visa, accusing the Biden administration of violating international law in response to his outspoken condemnation of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
The decision, announced by U.S. authorities on Friday, came a day after Petro joined a pro-Palestinian protest in New York, where he called on U.S. soldiers to defy President Donald Trump’s orders and demanded the creation of a global armed force to “liberate Palestinians.” Addressing protesters outside the United Nations headquarters, Petro argued that such a force “has to be bigger than that of the United States.”
In a defiant message posted on social media, the Colombian leader dismissed the revocation of his visa as inconsequential. “I no longer have a visa to travel to the United States. I don’t care. I don’t need a visa… because I’m not only a Colombian citizen but a European citizen, and I truly consider myself a free person in the world,” Petro wrote. “Revoking it for denouncing genocide shows the U.S. no longer respects international law.”
Israel has consistently rejected accusations of genocide in Gaza, insisting its military actions are acts of self-defense.
This is not the first time a Colombian president has faced such a move. In 1996, then-President Ernesto Samper had his U.S. visa cancelled amid a political scandal involving alleged campaign financing from the Cali drug cartel.
Relations between Bogotá and Washington have grown increasingly strained since Trump’s return to the White House. Earlier this year, Petro blocked deportation flights from the U.S., triggering threats of sanctions before a deal was reached. In July, both nations recalled their ambassadors after Petro accused Washington of plotting a coup, a claim the U.S. dismissed as unfounded.
Petro severed diplomatic ties with Israel in 2024 and subsequently banned Colombian coal exports to the country.
