Three weeks into his presidency, Colombia’s new conservative leader is already making good on his promise to crack down on illegal immigration, announcing mass deportation raids that could begin as early as this week.
President Abelardo de la Espriella made the announcement Sunday, signaling a dramatic reversal from his far-Left predecessor’s policies that had welcomed millions of migrants into the South American nation. The Trump-endorsed leader isn’t mincing words about his intentions.
“I will not accept any illegal immigrants, wherever they come from,” de la Espriella said in a video address. “They will have to leave and be deported. It is a political decision I am taking responsibility for.”
The operation will deploy national immigration authorities alongside Colombian police forces. Officials plan to first target illegal immigrants who are “committing crimes” before expanding enforcement to others lacking proper immigration status, according to the Associated Press.
The stakes are enormous. Roughly 2.8 million Venezuelan nationals were living in Colombia as of August, making up the majority of the country’s migrant population. Many arrived during Venezuela’s ongoing economic and political collapse under socialist rule.
Colombia had previously taken a dramatically different approach. In 2021, the government granted temporary residence permits to approximately 2.3 million Venezuelan migrants. That era of amnesty appears to be over.
De la Espriella’s election represents part of a broader conservative wave sweeping Latin America. In recent months, voters in Honduras, Costa Rica, Chile, Bolivia, and Ecuador have all elected Right-wing leaders. The shift suggests growing frustration with leftist policies across the region.
The change in Colombia’s leadership has already improved relations with Washington. Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed de la Espriella’s victory, saying he “looks forward to working closely” with the new president to “end illegal immigration to the United States,” among other priorities.
That stands in stark contrast to the tensions that marked the previous administration. Former President Gustavo Petro, a leftist, had temporarily refused to accept deportation flights from the United States. His defiance led to a diplomatic standoff with Washington.
“The U.S. cannot treat Colombian migrants as criminals,” Petro declared when he denied arrival of the planes.
The standoff didn’t last long. Petro ultimately backed down after President Trump threatened new tariffs against Colombia. The episode demonstrated both the limits of anti-American posturing and the effectiveness of Trump’s hardline approach to foreign policy.
The coming weeks will reveal just how extensive the deportation operations become. With nearly three million Venezuelan migrants in the country and a president who’s made border enforcement a central priority, Colombia is poised for a significant transformation in how it handles illegal immigration.
Whether other Latin American nations follow suit remains to be seen. But the trend is unmistakable: across the Western Hemisphere, voters are rejecting the open-border ideology that dominated progressive politics for years and choosing leaders who put their own citizens first.
