MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Petro ends FTA with Israel and reshapes the one with the US

Petro announced a series of measures concerning foreign trade after reshuffling his diplomatic structure

Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced on Monday the end of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Israel, as well as the reshaping of the existing one with the United States, following Washington's decision to expel him and revoke his visa for staging a pro-Palestine demonstration in the streets of New York during the 80th United Nations (UN) General Assembly.

Earlier Monday, President Petro mandated several changes to Colombia's foreign service and then ordered these substantial foreign trade adjustments: The end of the FTA with Israel due to the continuing attacks on Palestine, which he cited as having caused over 65,000 civilian deaths since October 2023. “There will be no more FTA with Israel,” he stressed. Companies were banned from selling to Israel. “Coal exporters must fold or sell their concessions” to the Government, Petro mentioned. Colombia had previously banned coal exports to Israel in August due to the war in Gaza, after 82.5% of exports to that country in 2024 consisted of coal.

The President also outlined his plan to alter the FTA with the US by imposing a tariff on all imported vehicles emitting carbon dioxide. He cited environmental grounds for the move. Putting those vehicles on the road is “murder,” Petro argued. On the other hand, vehicles that do not emit this gas will not pay the new tariff, regardless of their country of origin.

Moreover, ”ethanol will have a free market worldwide, at production cost. And we are freeing up land in Valle del Cauca for food production. Minister of Trade (Diana Morales), who is involved in this, but also the Foreign Ministry, we said that my interest in importing vehicles is not about secondary vehicle safety features, but about the primary safety of a vehicle that does not emit CO₂, because it is killing the world,“ Petro also announced.

Additionally, Petro noted that if the US has already changed the FTA, Colombia should change it too, emphasizing that ”trade is not more important than life.“

The former M-19 guerrilla fighter stressed his goal to strengthen Colombia's trade relations with all countries globally, moving away from an exclusive focus on the US, despite the 12-year-old FTA.

”We are not the kind of traders who kneel before greed, and that means there will be no more FTA with Israel,“ Petro underlined. In the case of the United States, ”it's not retaliation or hatred, it's for life,” he further reasoned.

According to the Colombian-American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham), Colombia's exports to the United States amounted to US$14,336 billion in 2024. Colombia remains a strong destination for US tourists, with more than 710,000 visitors between January and July 2025. However, exports to the US continue to be focused on commodities, and the trade deficit continues to grow.