MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

World leaders express solidarity with Uribe

Uribe's sentence is to be announced on Friday, Aug. 1

Many rightwing leaders expressed their solidarity with former Colombian President Álvaro Urive (73) after he was convicted of bribery and procedural fraud by a Bogotá court earlier Monday.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and several US congressmen, including Florida Representatives María Elvira Salazar and Mario Díaz-Balart, condemned the ruling. Rubio stated that Uribe's “only crime... has been to fight tirelessly and defend his homeland,” and criticized the “instrumentalization of the Colombian judiciary by radical judges,” calling it a “worrying precedent.” They further asserted that Uribe was being targeted by the “radical left” and the government of current President Gustavo Petro.

“Today, justice was not served in Colombia. An injustice was committed against Álvaro Uribe, the man who rescued the country from terrorism and confronted the FARC when no one else dared to. He is being condemned because he refused to make deals with criminals, because he is an obstacle to the radical left that wants to take power and turn Colombia into another Venezuela,” Salazar said on X.

Beyond the US, former Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benítez expressed “all my solidarity,” highlighting Uribe's “fundamental” leadership for Colombia and the region, and voiced confidence that “the truth will prevail.”

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado also offered “all my solidarity, trust, and affection,” commending Uribe as a “genuine ally of democracy and freedom in Venezuela.”

Former Colombian Presidents Iván Duque and Andrés Pastrana similarly defended Uribe, with Duque calling him “an irreproachable, transparent man” and urging international human rights bodies to monitor the situation.

While Uribe maintains his innocence, alleging “political persecution,” the verdict opens the possibility of a prison sentence, with the Prosecutor's Office requesting nine years (108 months) in prison. However, the Attorney General's Office has requested house arrest, citing his lack of criminal record and public prominence. The official sentence is expected to be announced on Friday, August 1.