Colombia's Foreign Minister 'renounces' U.S. visa as tensions between both nations escalate

File picture of Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio seen here with Union External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Source: X/@DrSJaishankar

BoColombia's Foreign Minister has “renounced” her U.S. visa to protest a decision by the U.S. State Department to revoke the visa of Colombian President Gustavo Petro, the Colombian government said on Monday (September 29, 2025).The decision by Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio comes as tensions between both nations escalate over issues that include drug policy, the war in Gaza and a U.S. naval build up in neighbouring Venezuela.While Colombia's Foreign Affairs Ministry did not respond to questions about the type of visa Villavicencio held, it stated in a press release that it was not interested in “diplomatic visas that limit opinions" or curtail the nation's “sovereignty.”The U.S. State Department revoked President Petro's visa on Friday after he participated in a New York protest against the war in Gaza, in which Petro called for the creation of an international army to liberate the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.Holding a megaphone and wearing a keffiyeh, the traditional Palestinian scarf, Petro called on US soldiers to “disobey” President Donald Trump's orders, adding that they should “not point their rifles against humanity.Hours after the protest the department said on social media that it would cancel Petro's visa “due to his reckless and incendiary actions.” Petro was back in Colombia when the announcement was made, after having spent several days in New York attending the UN General Assembly. He wrote on X that he “didn't care” about the punishment because he is also an Italian citizen, and could possibly travel to the US without a visa.