"I can't go [ to the United States ] anymore because I think they revoked my visa. I didn't need a visa, but oh well. I've seen Donald Duck several times, so I'm going to see other things," said the Colombian president during a cabinet meeting. Photo: EFE
Bogota, April 22 (RHC)-- Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced on Monday that the U.S. government revoked his visa and therefore he can no longer travel to the United States.
"I can't go anymore because I think they revoked my visa. I didn't need a visa, but oh well. I've already seen Donald Duck several times, so I'm going to see other things," said the Colombian president during a cabinet meeting.
Gustavo Petro made the reference to the visa when commenting that Finance Minister Germán Ávila traveled to the U.S. to participate in the meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) this week.
The Colombian president did not offer details about the reasons why the U.S. revoked his visa, but before commenting on that situation, he spoke about a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, apparently related to the deportation of Venezuelans to El Salvador.
There are two important contextual facts as a backdrop to President Petro's announcement. First, the Colombian president engaged in an argument with Donald Trump earlier this year that almost resulted in the severance of relations between the two countries.
Second, Colombia could be "decertified" in its fight against drugs by the United States following the increase in the number of hectares of illicit crops. The Colombian government has developed a strategy to avoid this scenario, but if that country confirms that it revoked Petro's visa, "decertification" will very likely be the next step.
If Petro's version is confirmed, he would be the second sitting Colombian president to have his visa revoked by the U.S. government. In mid-1996, the United States revoked the visa of then-President Ernesto Samper after it was falsely reported that drug money had been used in his election campaign.
For now, there has been no statement from U.S. authorities, nor has the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued any statement.
[ SOURCE: teleSUR ]
