A low attendance is reportedly expected due to Washington\u2019s increasingly aggressive stance in the region<\/p>\n
Several European leaders have pulled out of a meeting between EU, Latin American, and Caribbean officials over concerns that their attendance could upset US President Donald Trump, the Financial Times has reported. The summit comes days after Trump imposed sanctions and ordered military action against Colombia, the host nation.
\nEuropean Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and French President Emmanuel Macron have opted out of the EU-CELAC summit next week in Santa Marta. The withdrawals follow Trump\u2019s accusation that Colombian President Gustavo Petro was an \u201cillegal drug dealer\u201d and his order for US strikes on suspected narcotics boats in the Caribbean.
\nEU officials, still reliant on US military and intelligence support for Ukraine, are \u201cwary of upsetting Trump\u201d and jeopardizing a fragile trade deal agreed this summer, the FT reported on Monday.
\nA European Commission spokesperson said von der Leyen would not attend due to the current agenda and low turnout. Berlin cited similar reasons for Merz\u2019s absence, while the Elysee Palace confirmed Macron\u2019s decision without elaboration. A senior Latin American official told the FT that the meeting is suffering \u201clast-minute cancellations,\u201d calling the situation \u201cvery complicated.\u201d Bloomberg also reported, citing people familiar with the planning, that only five European leaders and three Latin American and Caribbean leaders have confirmed they will attend.
\nTrump has ordered a significant naval buildup in the Caribbean, claiming it aims to fight drug trafficking and pressure Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. The move followed last month\u2019s sanctions against Petro, further straining the already tense US-Colombia relationship.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
We have enough nukes to blow up the world 150 times \u2013 Trump<\/p>\n
Petro, whose plane was denied fuel during a stop in Cape Verde last week due to the sanctions, said Washington was trying to undermine the summit. \u201cThe new anti-democratic fossil geopolitics is trying to stop the peoples who want freedom and democracy from meeting,\u201d he wrote on X on Monday.
\nColombian Deputy Foreign Minister Mauricio Jaramillo downplayed the situation, saying the cancellations were unrelated to Washington\u2019s actions, adding, \u201cColombia is not isolated.\u201d
\nBrazil\u2019s Lula da Silva and Spain\u2019s Pedro Sanchez will reportedly attend, while European Council President Antonio Costa is expected to co-chair the meeting.
\nThe EU and CELAC represent 50 countries and 21% of global GDP. The summit is intended to discuss issues such as strengthening trade ties and fighting organized crime.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A low attendance is reportedly expected due to Washington\u2019s increasingly aggressive stance in the region Several European leaders have pulled out of a meeting between EU, Latin American, and Caribbean…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21843,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t