Far-right Colombian presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella greets supporters following preliminary results that show him leading leftist Ivan Cepeda, in Barranquilla, Colombia, on June 21. He was inaugurated Friday, and the U.S. Department of State pledged $1 billion for security threats. File photo by Mauricio Duenas Castaneda/EPA
Aug. 8 (UPI) — The U.S. Department of State announced Friday that the United States intends to give $1 billion to the new government of Colombia, which is now in the control of Abelardo de la Espriella, the right-wing candidate backed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
In a press release, the State Department said the government sent a delegation led by now-confirmed Attorney General Todd Blanche to Colombia to attend the inauguration of de la Espriella in Cali, Colombia, on Friday.
“The delegation demonstrates U.S. commitment to reinvigorating the U.S.-Colombia relationship and deepening of our shared security and economic partnership,” the press release from the office of the State Department’s spokesperson said. “As a cornerstone of this renewed partnership, the United States, working with Congress, intends to announce $1 billion in assistance as part of a security package to support President de la Espriella’s administration in achieving our shared goals.”
The goals center around de la Espriella’s promise of an “all-out war” on drug cartels.
De la Espriella, 48, is a lawyer and businessman and has worked to gain a reputation as a maverick outsider who plans to battle crime with an “iron fist,” the BBC reported. He promised to crack down on armed groups, shrink the government by up to 40% and rejuvenate the oil and gas sector.
“I have come to close a long chapter of national resignation and, together with the people, embark on the most profound transformation of our destiny,” De La Espriella said at the Pichincha Battalion military base in Cali, Colombia, Friday.
“I send a firm message to the Colombian people: The time has come to restore order, authority and freedom,” De La Espriella said. He pledged to crush armed insurgents, rebuild Colombia and defend democracy “by reason or by force.”
The new president comes to power during a time of deep political polarization in the country. He defeated leftist Sen. Iván Cepeda in a runoff election by 250,000 votes out of more than 26 million cast.
De la Espriella said he is bringing “the age of the Tiger,” when the state would be forceful and decisive against crime. His self-chosen nickname is “El Tigre.”
“There will not be a single place in our territory where criminals can feel safe,” he said.
He vowed to “definitively eradicate the scourge of illicit crops,” saying he would use aerial herbicides that did not harm human health or the environment to destroy coca, the plant used to make cocaine. In one of his first acts as president, Colombia would join Trump’s Shield of the Americas program, he said.
His campaign is very different from his predecessor Gustavo Petro. Pedro pushed for a “total peace” strategy to end an ongoing fight between guerrilla groups, the state and cartels.
Sadly, the program failed, critics have alleged. Membership of armed groups has expanded in recent years.
De la Espriella is a citizen of the United States as well as Colombia. He lived and worked in Miami for many years and became a U.S. citizen in 2023.
