Trump’s Aggressive Response Pressures South American Country to Finally Accept Criminal Illegal Aliens, White House Says

President Donald Trump has already begun deporting illegal aliens who have been convicted of other crimes, and one South American country has refused to allow a U.S. plane carrying criminal illegal aliens to land, in what Trump says is a violation of its legal obligations.

Trump announced tariffs, a travel ban, and sanctions against members of the Colombian government in response.

“I was just informed that two repatriation flights from the United States, with a large number of Illegal Criminals, were not allowed to land in Colombia,” the president wrote in a post on Truth Social Sunday. “This order was given by Colombia’s Socialist President Gustavo Petro, who is already very unpopular amongst his people.”

Petro’s approval rating has hovered around 30%, according to Al Jazeera.

“Petro’s denial of these flights has jeopardized the National Security and Public Safety of the United States, so I have directed my Administration to immediately take the following urgent and decisive retaliatory measures,” Trump added.

The measures include: “emergency 25% tariffs on all goods coming into the United States,” which will increase to 50% in one week; a travel ban and visa revocations on Colombian government officials; enhanced Customs and Border Protection inspections of all Colombian nationals and cargo on national security grounds; and sanctions under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

According to OFAC Law Group, the act grants the president authority to deal with unusual and extraordinary threats to national security by reforming economic policies.

“These measures are just the beginning,” Trump added. “We will not allow the Colombian Government to violate its legal obligations with regard to the acceptance and return of the Criminals they forced into the United States!”

Petro, the Colombian leader, wrote on X that the U.S. cannot treat Colombian migrants as criminals, and he announced that he would deny the entry of American planes carrying Colombians back to their original country. He demanded the U.S. establish a protocol to treat migrants with dignity before his country would receive them.

The U.S. and Colombia have a dual criminality extradition treaty. While Petro promised to re-evaluate this treaty, it appears to still be in effect.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, celebrated the move.

“Colombia doesn’t want to pick this fight,” he wrote on X. “If it does so anyway, it’ll end poorly for everyone. Especially Colombia.”

The Colombian leader appears to have changed his tune after Trump’s response.

Petro offered his presidential plane to help repatriate deportees from the U.S. who were set to arrive in the country Sunday morning, CNN reported.

“The measure responds to the government’s commitment to guarantee dignified conditions,” the presidency said in a statement.

Petro had previously demanded the U.S. use civilian, rather than military, aircraft to transport the illegal aliens.

The Brazilian government condemned what it characterized as the “degrading” treatment of Brazilians who were handcuffed by their hands and feet on a repatriation flight, CNN reported. Brasilia claimed the flight, managed by the U.S. Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, violated the terms of its repatriation agreement with the U.S.

The deportees claimed that ICE kept the handcuffs on them after the plane crossed into Brazilian airspace.

On Sunday evening, the White House claimed that Colombia had “agreed to all of President Trump’s terms, including the unrestricted acceptance of all illegal aliens from Colombia returned from the United States, including on U.S. military aircraft, without limitation or delay.”

“Based on this agreement, the fully drafted IEEPA tariffs and sanctions will be held in reserve, and not signed, unless Colombia fails to honor this agreement,” the White House added. “The visa sanctions issued by the State Department, and enhanced inspections from Customs and Border Protection, will remain in effect until the first planeload of Colombian deportees is successfully returned.”

“Today’s events make clear to the world that America is respected again,” the statement concluded. “President Trump will continue to fiercely protect our nation’s sovereignty, and he expects all other nations of the world to fully cooperate in accepting the deportation of their citizens illegally present in the United States.”

This is a breaking news story and may be updated.

The post Trump’s Aggressive Response Pressures South American Country to Finally Accept Criminal Illegal Aliens, White House Says appeared first on The Daily Signal.