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Colombia and the United States: Between sovereignty and foreign policy
November 7, 2025
Author:
Jonathan Rubiano
The recent suspension of US economic aid to Colombia, announced by President Donald Trump, has reshaped a historical relationship marked by both cooperation and dependence. This decision, justified by the argument of insufficient efforts to combat drug trafficking, jeopardizes humanitarian assistance, peace, and security programs, while also raising questions about Colombia's sovereignty and political autonomy in relation to its main ally.
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11/7/25
Colombia and the United States: Between sovereignty and foreign policy
The recent suspension of US economic aid to Colombia, announced by President Donald Trump, has reshaped a historical relationship marked by both cooperation and dependence. This decision, justified by the argument of insufficient efforts to combat drug trafficking, jeopardizes humanitarian assistance, peace, and security programs, while also raising questions about Colombia's sovereignty and political autonomy in relation to its main ally.
(Opinion piece)
Introduction
There is something more difficult than facing the United States as an enemy: becoming its ally. Not since the separation of Panama on November 3, 1903, has there been such a critical situation in bilateral relations between the United States and Colombia.
The increase in US tariffs and tensions with some countries in the region intensified after Colombian President Gustavo Petro's controversial statements in the streets of New York. He called for reflection on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which was generating intense international debate at the time, and some of his remarks were interpreted as defiance or a challenge to US power.
The relationship between Colombia and the United States has historically been close, and Colombia has established itself as the US's main ally in the region. This alliance has brought a number of benefits, but also challenges in terms of results and international perception. In some academic literature, this relationship is even described as a form of subordination to the United States, especially in the commercial sphere.
This can be seen in the following image, which shows that the North American market represents approximately 30% of both Colombian exports and imports. In contrast, US imports and exports to Colombia represent less than 1% of its total trade, reflecting the economic asymmetry between the two countries.
Source: Image taken from France 24 Español (2025), Trade relationship between Colombia and the United States
Loss of international cooperation
In this context of imbalance, the bilateral relationship has entered a new phase of tension. According to Venera Salazar (2025), President Donald Trump announced the suspension of “all payments that Washington allocates to Colombia,” arguing that the Colombian government “is not doing enough in the fight against drug trafficking.”
The measure, which involves suspending economic assistance from its main ally, puts at risk social, humanitarian, and security programs that have historically been funded with US resources.
According to the ForeignAssistance.gov website , cited by Venera Salazar (2025), the United States disbursed $708 million in aid to Colombia in fiscal year 2023, of which $396 million came from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), an agency closed by Trump's administration. The closure of this agency has a serious impact on the country, since “in just six years (2018–2024) it allocated more than $1.2 billion to the country , equivalent to 22% of all U.S. cooperation with Colombia” (Venera Salazar, 2025, para. 27).
As Michael Shifter, a professor at Georgetown University, cited by Venera Salazar (2025), warns, the cut “would represent a hard blow in the fight against drug trafficking, since, despite the tensions between Trump and Petro, Colombia remains a key partner for Washington” (para. 31).
In this way, the unilateral decisions of the US government not only aggravate the economic asymmetry, but also call into question the political stability and sovereignty of Colombia on the international stage.
Source: Prepared by the author using data from ForeignAssistance.gov (2025)
Repercussions for Colombian sovereignty
According to Jean Bodin, a 16th-century French jurist, political philosopher, economist, and theorist—considered one of the founders of absolutist thought—the concept of sovereignty was coined in his work *Six Books of the Republic * ( *Les six livres de la République *). In it, Bodin defines it as “the absolute and perpetual power of a Republic… that is, the maximum power it can possess.”
According to this conception, sovereignty, understood as a state's capacity to exercise supreme authority within its territory without external interference, is challenged when unilateral decisions by foreign powers condition or limit its scope of action. In the Colombian case, the suspension of economic aid by the United States, accompanied by direct accusations against the national government, constitutes a clear example of how asymmetrical relations can lead to a crisis of functional sovereignty. This situation not only affects the country's political autonomy but also its economic stability and its capacity to implement public policies independently .
Conclusion
The suspension of US cooperation with Colombia reflects a profound crisis in the bilateral relationship, marked by economic dependence, institutional fragility, and diplomatic subordination. While historically the alliance with Washington has provided key resources for security and development, it has also limited Colombian national sovereignty and its capacity for autonomous decision-making.
Given this scenario, it is imperative that Colombia diversify its sources of international cooperation, strengthen its domestic fiscal capacity, and consolidate regional alliances that will allow it to reduce its vulnerability to external decisions. Only through a sovereign foreign policy, based on reciprocity and mutual respect, will it be possible to transform this crisis into an opportunity to redefine a more equitable and strategic relationship with the United States.
References
El Tiempo (2025) How much money does Colombia receive from the United States in economic assistance? What it would stop receiving after the new Petro vs. Trump clash. (2025). Retrieved October 30, 2025, from https://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/eeuu-y-canada/cuanto-dinero-recibe-colombia-de-estados-unidos-en-asistencia-economica-los-rubros-que-dejaria-de-recibir-el-pais-tras-el-anuncio-de-donald-trump-3501096
ForeignAssistance.gov - Dashboard. (2025). Retrieved October 30, 2025, from https://foreignassistance.gov/
Jean bodin les six livres de la république - Commentaire de texte - dokkaebi. (2025). Retrieved October 30, 2025, from https://www.ladissertation.com/Histoire-et-G%C3%A9ographie/Histoire-contemporaine/Jean-bodin-les-six-livres-de-la-r%C3%A9publique-466629.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com