Colombian President Gustavo Petro stated that he suspects that the Trump administration has canceled his travel visa to the United States.
Petro, who had earlier relented to pressure from President Trump to accept deported migrants, made this assertion during a Cabinet meeting in Bogota, where he explained why he would be unable to attend the spring meetings organized by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington, DC.
“I can no longer go because I believe they took away my visa,” Petro remarked.
“I didn’t need to have one, but anyway, I’ve already seen Donald Duck several times, so I’ll go see other things,” the Colombian president continued, taking a jab at Trump.
The U.S. State Department, however, declined to verify or reject Petro’s statement, citing the confidentiality of visa-related information.
“Visa records are confidential under US law; therefore, we cannot discuss the details of individual visa cases,” a spokesperson from the State Department told The Post.
Earlier this year, Trump had warned of potential visa sanctions, heightened inspections for travelers, and emergency tariffs up to 50% on Colombia after a confrontation over the deportation of migrants.
Initially, Petro, a former leftist guerrilla leader, had resisted accepting deported Colombian migrants, criticizing the Trump administration for treating them as if they were “criminals.” However, after Trump’s threat, the Colombian president quickly changed his stance and even offered the U.S. his presidential plane to help transport the deported migrants back to Colombia.
“Today’s events make clear to the world that America is respected again,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt at the time, referring to the dispute.
{Matzav.com}