Monday, February 9, 2026

Latest News

All That Glitters Isn’t Trump Nor Petro

By Richard Emblin -

Colombian President Gustavo Petro appeared on Tuesday to melt into the gilded woodwork of the Oval Office, wearing a gold tie and an uncharacteristically sober dark suit. Seated beside U.S. President Donald Trump, the two-hour meeting appeared—at least on the surface—to be a cordial encounter between political adversaries entrenched on opposite sides of the ideological […]

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Colombia’s Petro claims U.S. “kidnapped” Maduro during Caracas strike

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on Tuesday that Nicolás Maduro should be returned to Venezuela to face trial in his home country, calling the U.S. military operation that captured the ousted leader in Caracas earlier this month a “kidnapping” that violated Venezuelan sovereignty. “They have to return him and have him tried by a Venezuelan […]

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Colombia, Ecuador in trade and energy spat after Noboa announces 30% “security” tariff

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombia and Ecuador have started exchanging trade retaliations after Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa announced a 30% “security” tariff on imports from Colombia, escalating tensions between Andean neighbours over border security cooperation. Noboa said the measure would take effect on Feb. 1 and would remain in place until Colombia shows “real commitment” to jointly tackle drug […]

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Vocal on Gaza, Petro’s Silence on Iran Is Hypocrisy Incarnate

By Opinion Desk -

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has made Gaza the moral centerpiece of his foreign policy. Since the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks, he has devoted extraordinary political capital to denouncing Israel, questioning its right to self-defense, and framing the Gaza war as a singular global emergency. He summoned “Free Palestine” marches, spent public funds hosting […]

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Beatriz González: The Artist of Colombia’s Political Memory (1932-2026)

By Richard Emblin -

Beatriz González, one of Latin America’s most influential contemporary artists, whose boldly colored, deliberately unrefined paintings and installations confronted Colombia’s long history of political violence, public mourning and social inequality – while also reshaping the country’s most important public art collection – died on Jan. 9, 2026, at her home in Bogotá. She was 93. […]

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Right-wing candidate De la Espriella leads Colombia presidential race, shows latest poll

By Richard Emblin -

Far-right independent candidate Abelardo De la Espriella, widely known by the nickname “El Tigre” (The Tiger), has taken the lead in Colombia’s presidential race five months ahead of the election, according to a new poll by AtlasIntel published by Semana magazine. The survey places De la Espriella, founder of the pro-democracy movement Defensores de la […]

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Petro–Trump Phone Call Defuses U.S.–Colombia Tensions

By The City Paper Staff -

It was a frustrating night for the roughly 6,000 supporters gathered in Bogotá’s Plaza de Bolívar to hear President Gustavo Petro deliver what many expected to be a fiery, anti-imperialist address. After waiting for hours in cold, rainy conditions, demonstrators waved placards reading “Yankee Go Home,” “Out Trump,” and “Respect Colombia,” anticipating a confrontational speech […]

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Petro Calls Colombians to the Streets After Trump Raises Military Option

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has called on supporters to mobilise nationwide on Wednesday to defend “national sovereignty,” sharply escalating a diplomatic crisis with the United States after President Donald Trump said a U.S. military operation against Colombia “sounds good” to him. The demonstrations are expected to take place in Bogotá’s Plaza de Bolívar, Parque Lourdes […]

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Trump: U.S. partnership to make Venezuelans “rich, independent and safe”

By Richard Emblin -

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States would “run” Venezuela until a “safe, proper and judicious transition” of power is completed, following a U.S. military operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Speaking at a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago residence in […]

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Black-market will push Venezuela for bigger discounts following US oil tanker seizure

By The Conversation -

The U.S. seizure of an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast appears designed to further squeeze the economy of President Nicolás Maduro’s government. The Dec. 10, 2025 operation — in which American forces descended from helicopters onto the vessel — followed months of U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean and was immediately condemned by Venezuela […]

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Colombia’s FM Snubs Machado’s Nobel Peace Prize After Daring Escape

By The City Paper Staff -

Colombia’s Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio declared Thursday that the Government of President Gustavo Petro is “not in agreement” with the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado – a position that signals how Colombia remains a close ideological ally of one of the hemisphere’s most authoritarian states. In remarks that were […]

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Hard-Left Candidate Iván Cepeda Leads Poll for Colombia’s 2026 Election

By Richard Emblin -

Senator Iván Cepeda of the ruling Historic Pact coalition has emerged as the early front-runner in Colombia’s 2026 presidential race, according to a nationwide Invamer poll released Sunday by Caracol TV and Blu Radio. The survey – the first major measurement since the lifting of Colombia’s recent polling restrictions – places the left-wing candidate at […]

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EU Leaders Ditch Santa Marta Summit With U.S. Sanctions on Petro

By Richard Emblin -

The upcoming EU-CELAC summit in Santa Marta, billed as Colombia’s most ambitious diplomatic event in over a decade, is now being reshaped by a cascade of cancellations from European leaders following U.S. sanctions against President Gustavo Petro. What was expected to unite more than 60 heads of state from Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean […]

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U.S. Treasury Puts Colombia’s Petro and Close Circle on ‘Clinton List’

By The City Paper Staff -

The U.S. Government moved aggressively against Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his inner circle on Friday, imposing sanctions that target his financial and political support network as relations between Washington and Bogotá struck a new low. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), also known as the Clinton List, designated Petro, First Lady […]

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Colombia Court Overturns Uribe Conviction, Declares Ex-President Innocent

By Richard Emblin -

Colombia’s Superior Tribunal of Bogotá has overturned the conviction of former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez, declaring him innocent of bribery and witness tampering in one of the country’s most divisive political trials in decades. The ruling by the tribunal’s Criminal Chamber revoked an earlier judgment by Bogotá’s 44th Circuit Court, which in August sentenced Uribe […]

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Colombian Politicians React to Trump’s Tariff Threat and Aid Suspension

By Richard Emblin -

U.S President Donald Trump triggered a political firestorm in Colombia after announcing on his social media platform – Truth Social – the immediate suspension of all financial aid and imposition of punitive tariffs on Colombian exports. The decision came after he branded President Gustavo Petro an “illegal drug leader.” Trump’s extraordinary statements mark one of […]

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