Petro defies US visa move, warns Trump is welcome in Colombia but not ‘war criminals’
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has downplayed the US State Department’s decision to revoke his American visa, insisting he does not need one to travel because he also holds European citizenship.
Writing on X, Petro said: “I am, in addition to being a Colombian who is proud of his country, who loves its immense tropical beauty, its sea, its mountains and all its cultures – as beautiful as nature itself – also a European citizen. I do not need your visa, and I will only go when invited by your people.”
Petro, who has previously confirmed he holds Italian nationality, noted that under the Visa Waiver Programme, he would only require an ESTA authorisation to enter the United States.
The move to revoke his visa came after Petro addressed pro-Palestinian demonstrators outside the United Nations headquarters in New York on Friday. He urged US soldiers to defy orders from President Donald Trump, saying they should “obey humanity” instead. The State Department later described his comments as “reckless and incendiary.”
“It is not a crime,” Petro reiterated on Saturday, “to call on armies not to fire on humanity.”
Despite the escalating row, the Colombian leader said Trump was welcome in his country, though he drew a sharp line: “No war criminal, let alone a criminal against humanity, will be allowed to enter Colombia.”
Petro had travelled to New York to address the UN General Assembly, where he accused Trump of being “complicit in genocide” in Gaza. His remarks followed a recent UN investigation which concluded that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians – a finding strongly denied by the Israeli government.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
