Colombian President Gustavo Petro delivered fiery remarks to a crowd of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered outside the United Nations headquarters in New York City on September 26, 2025, igniting a diplomatic storm between Bogotá and Washington.
Standing before hundreds of protesters waving Palestinian flags and chanting for a ceasefire, Petro called for the creation of a global armed force to “liberate Palestine” and explicitly urged U.S. soldiers to refuse orders from President Donald Trump.
“It [the global force] must be greater than that of the United States. That’s why, from New York, I call on the soldiers of the U.S. Army: do not point your rifles at humanity,” Petro declared in remarks captured on video and widely shared on social media. “Disobey Trump’s orders. Obey the orders of humanity.”
Within hours, the U.S. State Department announced it would revoke Petro’s visa, accusing the Colombian president of inciting disobedience and violence against the American commander-in-chief.
“Earlier today, Colombian President Gustavo Petro stood on a NYC street and urged U.S. soldiers to disobey lawful orders,” the State Department wrote in a statement posted on X. “We will revoke Petro’s visa due to his reckless and incendiary actions.”
The decision instantly escalated tensions between the two countries, whose relationship has already been strained over drug trafficking, migration policy, and Colombia’s criticism of U.S. support for Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
Petro quickly fired back, accusing Washington of undermining international norms and violating the principles on which the United Nations operates.
“The revocation of my visa breaks all the norms of immunity that protect the functioning of the United Nations and its General Assembly,” Petro wrote on X. “The fact that the Palestinian Authority was denied entry, and that my visa was canceled for asking the U.S. and Israeli armies not to support a genocide — which is a crime against humanity — shows that the U.S. government is no longer respecting international law.”
Petro had traveled to New York to address the annual UN General Assembly, where his speech included blistering criticism of Trump personally, accusing the U.S. president of being “complicit in genocide” in Gaza. His remarks came just days after a UN commission of inquiry, for the first time, formally concluded that Israel’s actions in Gaza constituted genocide — a charge Israel vehemently rejects.
Colombian media outlet Caracol Radio reported that Petro had already boarded his plane to leave the United States when the visa revocation was announced. Analysts noted that the move would make it difficult for Petro to participate in future UN meetings held in New York, potentially isolating Colombia from key diplomatic discussions.
The episode is the latest in a series of clashes between Petro and the Trump administration. Earlier this year, Petro blocked the landing of two U.S. military flights carrying deported Colombian migrants, accusing Washington of treating them like criminals. Although Bogotá later agreed to take them back, the spat marked a major rupture in what had been one of Washington’s closest alliances in Latin America.
Petro has also been sharply critical of U.S. counter-narcotics operations in the region, calling for criminal proceedings against U.S. personnel involved in deadly maritime strikes against suspected traffickers in international waters near South America.
Colombia, historically one of the United States’ most dependable partners on security issues, now finds its relationship with Washington at its lowest point in decades. Whether this latest diplomatic crisis will further distance the two governments — or push them back to the negotiating table — remains to be seen.