Trump victory as Colombia ACCEPTS US deportation planes carrying criminals & offers Petro’s jet after tariff threat
DONALD Trump has claimed an early victory after Colombia backed down in a dispute over migrant repatriation flights.
The president had threatened tariffs and sanctions on the South American nation to punish it for refusing to accept military jets carrying deportees.
Newly-inaugurated Trump posted online about his intention to impose a 25 per cent tariff on Colombian imports and an immediate visa revocation for government officials.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro had stopped two US military aircraft full of their citizens from landing in the country on Sunday.
But late on Sunday, just two hours after Trump’s threat, the White House said Bogota had caved and agreed to accept migrants.
Petro even offered his presidential plane to “facilitate the dignified return of the compatriots who were to arrive in the country this morning from deportation flights”.
It means Washington will not impose its threatened penalties as Trump ploughs on with his sweeping immigration crackdown.
The White House said Colombia will accept migrants arriving on US military aircraft “without limit or delay”.
Draft orders imposing tariffs and sanctions on Colombia would be “held in reserve, and not signed, unless Colombia fails to honor this agreement”, it added.
Colombia said a dialogue with Washington would be maintained to “guarantee the dignity of our citizens”.
The agreement is being hailed as a victory for Trump, who retook the White House a week ago.
The statement added: “Today’s events make clear to the world that America is respected again.
“President Trump … expects all other nations of the world to fully cooperate in accepting the deportation of their citizens illegally present in the United States.”
Colombia’s foreign minister Luis Gilberto Murillo said it had “overcome the impasse” with the US just hours after Petro condemned what he called Trump’s “blockade”.
Murillo and Colombia’s ambassador to the US will travel to Washington in the coming days to follow up on the agreement.
Washington’s draft measures – now on hold – included imposing 25 per cent tariffs on all Colombian goods coming into the US, which would go up to 50 per cent in one week.
TikTok, gender debate & JFK truth – the rest of Trump’s to-do list
BY Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter
JFK ASSASSINATION
Trump promised to uncover a slew of classified documents on the assassinations of President John F Kennedy, Senator Robert Kennedy and Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King.
During his first term Trump did release some documents related to the fatal shooting of JFK in Dallas, Texas, 1963.
King and Robert Kennedy were both assassinated in 1968.
“In the coming days, we are going to make public remaining records related to the assassinations of President John F Kennedy, his brother Robert Kennedy, as well as Dr Martin Luther King Jr and other topics of great public interest,” he said the day before his Inauguration.
Trump has not specified what kind of documents he hopes to release, but the JFK assassination in particular has been a long-term source of debate in the US.
A widespread conspiracy theory has suggested the involvement of the federal government or CIA in orchestrating and covering up his death.
TIKTOK BAN
Trump has hit repeatedly hit out at the plans to ban TikTok in the US – a wildly popular social media app with some 170million American users.
After national security concerns tied to its Chinese ownership, the app was briefly shut down across the country.
But mere hours after Trump promised to reinstate it after taking office, American users were able to get back online.
The app “welcomed back” American yesterday, lauding Trump as the reason for its return even before his official return to the Oval Office.
He then extended a 90-day period to keep it running.
GENDER DEBATE
Trump has previously vowed to reinstate a ban on transgender military service – something he brought in during his first term which Biden later axed.
He said at a rally in December: “With the stroke of my pen, on day one, we’re going to stop the transgender lunacy.”
He is also expected to ban transgender women from competing in women’s sports, saying: “And I will sign executive orders to end child sexual mutilation, get transgender out of the military and out of our elementary schools and middle schools and high school.
“And we will keep men out of women’s sports. And that will likewise be done on Day One.”
CLIMATE CRUNCH
Trump has also promised to look at cost of living efforts and visit Los Angeles in the wake of recent devastating wildfires.
And he is expected to overturn President Biden’s climate policies – including on the regulation of pollution or green job efforts.
It could also stretch to a ban on new wind projects or electric vehicle mandates.
He has already pulled out of the Paris Climate Agreement – just as he did in 2017, before Biden rejoined in 2021.
It also includes a travel ban and visa revocations on Colombian government officials; and emergency treasury, banking and financial sanctions.
Trump also threatened to direct enhanced border inspections of Colombian nationals and cargo.
It comes after Trump declared illegal immigration a national emergency and imposed a crackdown since taking office last Monday.
He directed the US military to help with border security, issued a broad ban on asylum and took steps to restrict citizenship for children born on US soil.
US military aircraft carried out two flights, each with about 80 migrants, to Guatemala on Friday.
Mexico also refused a request last week to let a US military aircraft land with migrants.