Colombian President Gustavo Petro stated this Sunday that there are 15,660 Americans living “irregularly” in the country and invited them to come forward to “regularize their situation.”

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“There are 15,660 Americans residing in Colombia irregularly. They should approach our immigration service to regularize their situation,” the president expressed on the social network X.

Petro also indicated that “American citizens who wish to can be in Colombia” because he believes “in human freedom. But there are more than 15,660 who are irregular, and according to Colombian laws, they must regularize their stay.”

Los ciudadanos norteamericanos que lo deseen pueden estar en Colombia, yo creo en la libertad humana.

Pero están irregulares más de 15.666 y por las leyes colombianas deben regularizar su estadía.

No me verán jamás quemando una bandera gringa o haciendo una "ratzia" para… https://t.co/HzwkhzR3sr

— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) January 26, 2025

Hay 15.660 estadounidenses establecidos en Colombia de manera irregular. Deben acercase a nuestro servicio migratorio para regularizar su situación.

Espero que no se congele el dialogo sobre el Darien. Si no hay regularización aumentarán las ilegalidades. Ya lo vimos cuando EEUU…

— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) January 26, 2025

“You will never see me burning an American flag or conducting a ‘razzia’ to return illegal immigrants handcuffed to the U.S. True libertarians will never attack human freedom. We are the opposite of the Nazis,” the president stated.

This declaration comes just hours after Petro himself claimed that he did not allow the entry of planes carrying deported citizens from the United States because they did not receive dignified treatment, which, according to local media, led Washington to suspend the visa processing in Colombia starting this Monday.

In that regard, the president asserted that “the dignity of Colombia and Latin America comes first,” as he believed that “migrants are human beings and subjects of rights and as such must be treated.”

This followed his assertion that the United States “cannot treat Colombian migrants as criminals” and called on that country to “establish a protocol for dignified treatment of migrants” before they are received by Colombia.

The announcement comes amid the controversy surrounding deportations in several Latin American countries as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration policy.

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