FILE PHOTO: Gustavo Petro, the president of Colombia addresses the "Summit of the Future" in the General Assembly Hall of the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, U.S., September 23, 2024. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs/File Photo
BOGOTA (Reuters) - Two Colombian air force planes carrying deportees from the United States arrived in Bogota on Tuesday, the government said, paving the way for U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to lift visa restrictions and other measures on Colombian citizens.
Colombia's President Gustavo Petro averted an economic disaster over the weekend after diplomats from his government and the U.S. reached a deal on deportation flights in a dispute that had led both countries to threaten tariffs and the U.S. to impose visa measures.
One plane, flying from San Diego, California, brought home 110 Colombians and the other, which departed from El Paso, Texas, brought home 91, the Colombian Foreign Ministry said on X.
Deportee and engineer Andredy Alexander Barrientos, 26, told reporters at Bogota's airport he was in the U.S. for just 12 days. He went to the United States in search of "more economic stability," he said.
Petro had objected to the use of U.S. military planes to deport Colombians, saying his country's citizens were being treated like criminals, and he had refused to allow planes to land.
Trump responded with a pledge to impose a 25% tariff on all Colombian goods, set to rise to 50% in a week, as well as emergency treasury, banking and financial sanctions and visa restrictions on Colombian officials and citizens alike.
Petro threatened his own tariffs, but the two sides reached a deal on Sunday night. Trump officials cheered the deal as a victory and said Trump used Colombia as an example of U.S. power, while Colombian officials have said the agreement is a win for both sides.
Dozens of frustrated Colombians had long-awaited visa appointments at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota canceled on Monday.
(Reporting by Luisa Fernanda Gonzalez and Luis Jaime Acosta, Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb, Editing by Angus MacSwan)
