US revokes Colombian President’s visa over “incendiary” UNGA speech

The United States announced on Friday that it would revoke Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s visa, accusing him of urging US troops to disobey orders during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in New York.

“Earlier today, Colombian president @petrogustavo stood on a NYC street and urged US soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence,” the State Department wrote on X. “We will revoke Petro's visa due to his reckless and incendiary actions.”

Earlier today, Colombian president @petrogustavo stood on a NYC street and urged U.S. soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence.

We will revoke Petro’s visa due to his reckless and incendiary actions.

— Department of State (@StateDept) September 27, 2025

Petro, addressing a large crowd through a megaphone and accompanied by a translator, called on “nations of the world” to form an army “larger than that of the United States.”

In his remarks, he appealed directly to US soldiers, “That is why, from here in New York, I ask all soldiers in the United States Army not to point their rifles at humanity. Disobey Trump's order! Obey the order of humanity!”

A source from Petro’s office confirmed that the Colombian leader was en route to Bogotá on Friday night. Petro, who also holds Italian citizenship, noted previously that he does not require a US visa to travel.

The president was in New York to attend the UN General Assembly, where he launched a scathing attack on the Trump administration earlier in the week. He demanded an international investigation into US strikes against suspected drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean, saying the operations killed more than a dozen “poor young people” who were unarmed. Washington has defended the strikes as part of its anti-narcotics mission off Venezuela, which it accuses of harboring a cartel.

The Trump administration recently escalated its military presence in the region, deploying eight warships and a submarine to the Caribbean, the largest show of force in years, stoking fears in Venezuela of a possible invasion.

Petro, whose country remains the world’s top cocaine producer, has suggested that Colombians may have been among the victims of the US raids. Tensions escalated further last week when Washington decertified Colombia as a partner in the anti-drug fight, though it stopped short of imposing sanctions.

Relations between Bogotá and Washington have deteriorated sharply since Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, took office.

Reacting to the visa decision, Colombia’s Interior Minister Armando Benedetti lashed out at Washington. “But since the empire protects him, it's taking it out on the only president who was capable enough to tell him the truth to his face,” Benedetti wrote on X, arguing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should have been denied entry instead of Petro.