US, Colombia clash over deportations and raise tariffs in show of Trump's pledge to limit migration

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Earlier, the U.S. president had ordered visa restrictions, 25% tariffs on all Colombian incoming goods, which would be raised to 50% in one week, and other retaliatory measures sparked by Petro's decision to reject two Colombia-bound U.S. military aircraft carrying migrants. “We will not allow the Colombian Government to violate its legal obligations with regard to the acceptance and return of the Criminals they forced into the United States.” Earlier Sunday, Petro said his government would not accept flights carrying migrants deported from the U.S. until the Trump administration creates a protocol that treats them with “dignity.” Petro made the announcement in two X posts, one of which included a news video of migrants reportedly deported to Brazil walking on a tarmac with restraints on their hands and feet. After Trump's announcement, Petro said in a post on X that he had ordered the “foreign trade minister to raise import tariffs from the U.S. by 25%.” Colombia has traditionally been the U.S.’s top ally in Latin America. A State Department spokesperson confirmed to AP the agency suspended processing visas at the U.S. Embassy in Colombia's capital, Bogota, “in direct response to President Petro’s decision to not accept repatriation flights of Colombian citizens.” Colombians emerged in recent years as a major presence on the U.S. border with Mexico, aided in part by a visa regime that allows them to easily fly to Mexico and avoid trekking though the treacherous Darien Gap.