Colombia’s president claims Trump will ‘wipe out humanity’ amid tariff and migrant row

Colombia’s president Gustavo Petro has claimed US president Donald Trump is set to “wipe out the human species because of greed” amid a row between the countries over tariffs.

The two world leaders ended up in a very public spat after Trump ordered 25 per cent tariffs on all Colombian goods in response to Petro barring two US military deportation flights from landing in the country on Sunday (26 January), BBC reported.

Petro initially responded to the deportation flights by saying Colombia would accept repatriated citizens on “civilian planes, without treating them like criminals”. 

After Trump retaliated by proposing tariffs on the country, Colombia agreed to accept deported migrants, and the US dropped the tariff proposals. 

According to the White House, Colombia has now agreed to accept migrants arriving on US military aircraft “without limitation or delay”. Colombia stated that it would maintain a dialogue with the US to “guarantee the dignity of our citizens”.

The issue between the US and Colombia arose after Trump’s administration proposed carrying out “mass deportations”, with the president signing multiple executive orders expanding Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) powers to arrest and detain people, tightening immigration rules, and proposing deportation of migrants on his first day in office. 

What did Columbia’s president Gustavo Petro say about Donald Trump?

On Sunday (26 January), president Gustavo Petro launched a blistering attack against Donald Trump on Twitter/X, claiming the Republican president is on track to “wipe out the human species” with “greed”, saying he doesn’t “like your oil”, and adding that travelling to the US is “a bit boring”. 

“You don’t like our freedom, okay. I don’t shake hands with white slavers,” Petro wrote. 

“Overthrow me, President, and the Americas and humanity will respond… You can try to carry out a coup with your economic strength and your arrogance.”

He continued: “Trump, I don’t really like travelling to the US, it’s a bit boring… I confess that there are some commendable things. 

Trump, a mi no me gusta mucho viajar a los EEUU, es un poco aburridor, pero confieso que hay cosas meritorias, me gusta ir a los barrios negros de Washington, allí ví una lucha entera en la capital de los EEUU entre negros y latinos con barricadas, que me pareció una pendejada,…

— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) January 26, 2025

“I like going to the black neighbourhoods of Washington, where I saw an entire fight in the US capital between blacks and Latinos with barricades, which seemed like nonsense to me, because they should join.”

Petro added that the US “will never rule us” after the tariff row, claiming “I resisted torture and I resist you”. 

“I don’t want slavers next to Colombia, we already had many and we freed ourselves. What I want next to Colombia are lovers of freedom,” he wrote.  

The Colombian president did offer to meet with Trump “one day, over a glass of whiskey” to speak on their differences, but that he ultimately does not think Trump respects him or the Colombian people. 

“It’s difficult because you consider me an inferior race and I’m not, nor is any Colombian. So if you know someone who is stubborn, that’s me, period,” he said. 

What is Colombia’s record on LGBTQ+ rights?

According to LGBTQ+ rights website Equaldex, Colombia is a progressive country when it comes to LGBTQ+ rights, with same-sex marriage and adoption legalised, legal non-binary gender recognition, and anti-discrimination laws in place. 

In total, Colombia is rated 73 out of 100 in terms of LGBTQ+ equality – losing points as the country has not yet banned LGBTQ+ conversion therapy – with the US rated 70 out of 100. 

Since Donald Trump was inaugurated as president last Monday (20 January), the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans have been quickly rolled back. 

On his first day in office for a second term, Trump signed an executive order proclaiming the US would only recognise “two genders”. In the days since, orders have been made to state departments to stop issuing passports with “X” gender markers, which are used by many trans and non-binary citizens. 

LGBTQ+ campaigners have attacked the moves, with Jeremy Comeau, the president of the National Federation of Stonewall Democrats, describing them as a “direct assault on LGBTQ+ Americans”.

Comeau went on to say: “Leadership should unite, not erase, us. We deserve better. Trump’s declaration is not just rhetoric, it’s a rallying cry for policies that will harm millions of Americans.”

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