Colombia seeks U.S. tariff pause after deadly earthquake

Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella said he has asked U.S. President Donald Trump to temporarily suspend tariffs on Colombian goods as the country begins rebuilding from a devastating earthquake that killed hundreds of people and damaged communities across the west of the country.

De la Espriella said Saturday that he made the request during a roughly 10-minute call with Trump, who offered condolences for the victims of Monday’s 7.4-magnitude quake. The Colombian leader described the conversation as “very friendly and cordial.”

“I asked him to consider to temporarily suspend the high tariffs that are affecting Colombian products, in order to give some relief to our business owners, who are facing very difficult times due to the effects of the earthquake,” De la Espriella wrote on X.

The quake struck western Colombia, devastating the cities of Cali and Pereira. It killed at least 294 people and damaged or destroyed tens of thousands of buildings across the country, according to Colombia’s National Unit for Disaster Risk Management, Al Jazeera reported. CBS News reported that nearly 300 people were killed and almost 13,000 homes were destroyed.

“I told him that we have a huge challenge ahead: rebuilding Colombia amid the extremely difficult and apocalyptic economic situation that I inherited,” De la Espriella said.

Post-earthquake reconstruction is expected to cost about $6.4 billion, Al Jazeera reported. Colombia’s Finance Minister Miguel Gomez said the government was not yet considering raising taxes to cover that amount, according to local media cited by Al Jazeera.

U.S. tariffs on Colombian products rose from 10% to 12.5% in late July, with exceptions for some products, including coffee and oil. The United States is Colombia’s top export market.

The Trump administration imposed tariffs of up to 12.5% on 60 nations, including Colombia, after accusing them of failing to stamp out forced labor. CBS News reported that the tariffs were imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and replaced levies enacted under Section 122 of the same law, which had been imposed in February and had expired.

The White House moved to enact the tariffs after the Supreme Court in February struck down sweeping tariffs Trump had imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, ruling they were illegal without congressional authorization, CBS News reported. CBS said it had contacted the White House for comment on De la Espriella’s request.

Trump endorsed De la Espriella, a right-wing millionaire lawyer-turned-politician, during his presidential campaign. Al Jazeera reported that De la Espriella won a close race in June against leftist Ivan Cepeda. CBS News reported that he succeeded leftist former President Gustavo Petro, whose administration was frequently at odds with the White House.

Since taking office, De la Espriella has joined the “Shield of the Americas,” an anti-cartel alliance led by Trump and involving pro-U.S. governments in Latin America. Member states exchange information and coordinate judicial and security forces to address transnational criminal activity, CBS News reported.

De la Espriella has also said he plans to build a military alliance with the United States and Israel to support Colombia’s fight against armed groups.