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Colombia's overseas curate has “renounced” her U.S. visa to protestation a determination by the U.S. State Department to revoke the visa of Colombian President Gustavo Petro, the Colombian authorities said connected Monday (September 29, 2025).
The determination by Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio comes arsenic tensions betwixt some nations escalate implicit issues that see cause policy, the warfare successful Gaza and a U.S. naval physique up successful neighbouring Venezuela.
While Colombia's Foreign Affairs Ministry did not respond to questions astir the benignant of visa Villavicencio held, it stated successful a property merchandise that it was not funny successful “diplomatic visas that bounds opinions" oregon curtail the nation's “sovereignty.”
The U.S. State Department revoked President Petro's visa connected Friday aft helium participated successful a New York protestation against the warfare successful Gaza, successful which Petro called for the instauration of an planetary service to liberate the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Holding a megaphone and wearing a keffiyeh, the accepted Palestinian scarf, Petro called connected US soldiers to “disobey” President Donald Trump's orders, adding that they should “not constituent their rifles against humanity.
Hours aft the protestation the section said connected societal media that it would cancel Petro's visa “due to his reckless and incendiary actions.” Petro was backmost successful Colombia erstwhile the announcement was made, aft having spent respective days successful New York attending the UN General Assembly. He wrote connected X that helium “didn't care” astir the punishment due to the fact that helium is besides an Italian citizen, and could perchance question to the US without a visa.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro addresses pro-Palestinian demonstrators, done a translator, accompanied by instrumentalist Roger Waters, astatine Dag Hammarskjold Plaza extracurricular UN headquarters, during the 80th United Nations General Assembly successful New York City, U.S., September 26, 2025. | Photo Credit: Reuters
The revocation of Petro's visa marks a caller debased successful the leftist leader's narration with the Trump administration, which earlier this period placed Colombia connected a database of countries that it says are not fulfilling their planetary commitments to curb cause trafficking.
‘Rare’
David Hart, an migration lawyer based successful Miami, said that it is precise uncommon for non-immigrant visa holders — specified arsenic those with tourer oregon diplomatic visas — to renounce their question permit.
He said that radical who bash not privation to question to the US tin simply fto their visas expire and past take to not renew them.
“They are doing this for the media and to amusement solidarity” with Petro, Hart said of the overseas minister's efforts to renounce her visa.
Wilfredo Allen, an migration lawyer from Miami, said that determination is nary ceremonial process for quitting connected a non-immigrant visa. He added that Colombia's overseas affairs curate volition apt person to nonstop a missive to the US embassy seeking the cancellation of her question permit.
“If you don't privation to question to the US you tin simply take not to come,” Mr. Allen said. “I had ne'er seen idiosyncratic instrumentality their clip to renounce a non-immigrant visa.”
