Colombia’s Security Call With Marco Rubio Explained

COLOMBIA · SECURITY

Colombia’s President Abelardo de la Espriella held a call with Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, on Monday 12 October about security. The presidency said the talk lasted more than 15 minutes and covered cooperation, regional stability and the challenges Colombia faces.

For Americans, the call is the latest sign of warmer ties after years of friction under leftist Gustavo Petro. The State Department said the call served to reaffirm the “reinvigorated U.S.-Colombia partnership,” though Washington still lists Colombia as failing in the drug fight.

What Was Said on the Call With Marco Rubio

According to the presidency, the call with Marco Rubio reviewed Colombia’s current situation, the main national events and the challenges facing the country. The two men also stressed mutual support and stronger strategic relations between Colombia and the United States, the statement said.

The statement called the United States a strategic partner of Colombia. It stressed the need for direct and permanent contact with Washington and for “strengthening the mechanisms of cooperation to face shared challenges.”

Bogotá also reaffirmed its commitment to “a solid bilateral relationship, based on trust, mutual respect, cooperation and the defence of the interests of both countries.” La Opinión, a newspaper in the border city of Cúcuta, carried the same account through the Colprensa news agency.

The presidency said the call began at 1 p.m. Bogotá time, a detail also carried by Portafolio, a Bogotá business daily.

Washington published its own short account the same day. Spokesman Tommy Pigott said Rubio “welcomed Colombia’s efforts in advancing shared priorities and its continued contributions to a safe, secure, and prosperous hemisphere.”

Who Was on the Call

Abelardo de la Espriella is a conservative lawyer who took office on 7 August, replacing the leftist Gustavo Petro. He has put armed groups and drug trafficking at the centre of his first weeks, from extradition orders to a proposed anti-terror law.

Marco Rubio is the US Secretary of State, Washington’s top diplomat, and a former senator from Florida. He visited Colombia on Tuesday 8 September, when he met De la Espriella in Barranquilla, a Caribbean port city.

It was not their first call. On 18 August, the two spoke about US help after the 10 August earthquake, including US$26.5 million in emergency aid, the State Department said.

Why Security Cooperation Matters Now

Each year, Washington names countries it says have “failed demonstrably” in the fight against drugs, a label known as decertification. In mid-September 2026, Trump kept Colombia on that list, according to El Universal of Cartagena and Vanguardia of Bucaramanga.

The determination blamed the incompetence and chaos of Petro’s government, which ran Colombia for most of the period under review, both papers reported. It praised De la Espriella’s pledge of an aggressive campaign against coca crops and cocaine production.

Trump said he would consider lifting the label if Colombia makes progress next year on aggressive coca eradication and on dismantling narco-terrorist networks. That makes the coming year of cooperation the basis for any change in Colombia’s status.

The same text said Colombia’s army, police, prosecutors and courts finally have a worthy defender in De la Espriella. Extraditions to the United States are the other visible channel of cooperation under the new government.

From Barranquilla to a Phone Call

Colombian outlets presented Monday’s call with Marco Rubio as a renewed contact, a month after Rubio’s visit to Barranquilla. There, the two governments signed two memorandums of understanding, on critical minerals and on civil nuclear cooperation, El Universal and Publimetro reported.

Both outlets noted that the memorandums are not binding treaties. Security was also on the Barranquilla agenda, with De la Espriella asking for US support against armed groups and drug-trafficking organisations, El Universal reported.

The call with Marco Rubio fell on a busy day for Colombian security policy, which included a presidential address on security. De la Espriella’s draft anti-terror statute takes US tools as its reference, including the US Treasury’s sanctions list and foreign terrorist designations, Portafolio reported.

The same Monday, Foreign Minister Omar Bula asked the UN Security Council to narrow its peace mission in Colombia.

What It Means for You

The call with Marco Rubio changes no law, tariff or travel rule on its own. It signals that Bogotá wants direct and permanent contact with Washington on security, after years of tension under Petro.

For investors, the Barranquilla minerals memorandum points to US interest in Colombian mining, but it creates no binding commitments yet. For travellers, a diplomatic call does not change security conditions, so the State Department’s travel advisory for Colombia remains the reference.

The item to watch is the drug-failure label. Trump tied any lifting of it to coca eradication and action against trafficking networks over the next year.

What Prediction Markets Say

Bets that the United States will invade Colombia in 2026 traded at 3.1% on Polymarket (13 October, 4:55 a.m. ET). That market has drawn about US$155,000 in bets, and its price moved by only 0.1 points in the past day.

Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.

What Is Not Known

Neither the presidency nor the State Department named a new agreement, figure or operation after the call with Marco Rubio. Washington’s account did not mention drugs, extraditions or the drug-failure label.

It is also unclear which national events the two men discussed, or whether those issues came up in private. No date for a further meeting or visit has been announced.

More on this story: Colombia Says 125 Tons of Cocaine Seized Since August; Colombia Asks UN to Drop Rural Reform by 31 October; Colombia's Santa Marta Escape and What Happens Next; Colombia Security Cooperation With the US, What Comes Next.

More: Colombia news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who was on the call with Marco Rubio?

Colombia’s President Abelardo de la Espriella held a call with Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, on Monday 12 October. Colombia’s presidency said the call lasted more than 15 minutes.

What did Colombia and the United States discuss?

According to Colombia’s presidency, they discussed Colombia’s situation, security, bilateral cooperation and regional stability. The State Department said Rubio reaffirmed the “reinvigorated U.S.-Colombia partnership.”

Is Colombia still decertified by the United States?

Yes. In September 2026, Washington kept Colombia on its list of countries that failed demonstrably in the drug fight, blaming the previous government. Trump said he would consider lifting the label if coca eradication and action against trafficking networks advance.

Did the call produce a new agreement?

No new agreement was announced. During Rubio’s 8 September visit to Barranquilla, the two governments signed two non-binding memorandums on critical minerals and civil nuclear cooperation.

Sources: Presidency of Colombia, press statement on the call, 12 October 2026; US Department of State, Secretary Rubio’s Call with Colombian President De La Espriella, 12 October 2026; US Department of State, Secretary Rubio’s Call with Colombian President De La Espriella (earthquake aid), 18 August 2026; La FM (citing the Presidency of Colombia), 12 October 2026; La Opinión / Colprensa (citing the Presidency of Colombia), 12 October 2026; Portafolio (citing the Presidency of Colombia), 12 October 2026; Portafolio (anti-terror statute), 8 October 2026; Portafolio (UN mission request), 12 October 2026; Vanguardia (inauguration), 7 August 2026; El Universal (US drug determination), 16 September 2026; Vanguardia (US drug determination), 16 September 2026; El Universal (Barranquilla memorandums), 8 September 2026; Publimetro Colombia (Barranquilla memorandums), 9 September 2026.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief

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