Colombian President Seeks Trump Tariff Relief After Quake
Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella has asked President Trump to temporarily suspend tariffs on Colombian goods as the nation recovers from a devastating earthquake that killed at least 289 people.
According to Washington Examiner, de la Espriella reached out to Trump on Saturday night following the catastrophic 7.4 magnitude earthquake that struck western Colombia on Monday morning. The Colombian leader, who took office earlier this month with Trump’s backing during a closely contested runoff election on June 21, has been emphasizing his close ties with the American president.
In a post on X, de la Espriella expressed gratitude for U.S. assistance already provided while making his appeal. He stated that he asked Trump to consider the temporary suspension of high tariffs affecting Colombian products, as Washington Examiner reports, in order to provide relief to business owners facing extremely difficult conditions due to the earthquake’s effects.
The Trump administration has not yet responded publicly to the tariff suspension request. However, the United States has committed $26.5 million in earthquake relief, including food supplies, temporary shelters, and medical equipment, according to the State Department.
Widespread Devastation Across Western Colombia
The earthquake struck Monday morning with its epicenter in Choco, one of Colombia’s poorest and most remote regions. Major cities including Pereira, Cali, and Quibdo suffered severe damage, with coastal communities along the Pacific bearing the brunt of the destruction. President de la Espriella has officially declared the earthquake a natural disaster.
Government figures indicate 143 people remain missing, though civilian-maintained databases suggest the actual number could be in the thousands. The quake has injured 3,937 people, completely destroyed 14,705 homes, and damaged another 81,536 residences across the affected areas.
Search and Rescue Operations Continue
In Cali, Colombia’s third-largest city, emergency workers continue searching for more than 70 people reported missing, despite the critical 48 to 72-hour window for finding survivors having passed. Alejandro Eder, the city’s mayor, told reporters from the unified command post that miracles can happen even after 120 hours, expressing continued hope for rescuing people alive from the rubble.
The disaster represents a severe test for de la Espriella’s nascent administration, which had only been in office for days when the earthquake struck. His appeal to Trump reflects both the desperate need for economic relief and his strategy of leveraging his relationship with the U.S. president to secure support for Colombia’s recovery efforts.
With information from Washington Examiner
