We hereby share an unofficial translation of an article published by Nueva Democracia on the 3^rd of July.

Abelardo de la Espriella Steps into Presidency with the Support of Yankee Imperialism

The election of a far-right representative in our country is not an isolated event; This is in line with the trend in Latin America toward establishing governments that are even more country-selling and more of a lackey to US imperialism, that comply with its directives much more obediently, and that ensure the success of the plans of Yankee imperialism in the region.

On June 21st, the second round of the presidential elections was held, in which the ultra-reactionary Abelardo de la Espriella was elected as the new president of Colombia. This reactionary lawyer defeated the opportunistic candidate, Iván Cepeda, by a margin of less than 1%: 12,959,542 votes (49.66%) against 12,708,712 (48.70%). Abelardo takes office at the Casa de Nariño [Translators note: the Presidential Palace] amid a political crisis among the ruling classes and with the open support of the genocidal Donald Trump and other reactionary elements in the United States, such as Republican Senator Bernie Moreno.

Trump assured the media monopoly that his public endorsement of Abelardo was decisive for the victory, stating that he “had no chance” of losing after receiving said support; he also described Abelardo as “a great president” with whom diplomatic relations between the two countries will be strengthened. In other words, greater alignment and subjugation of Colombia to the plans of Yankee imperialism in the region. This is a clear and brazen interference by Yankee imperialism in Colombia’s internal affairs.

Abelardo de la Espriella thanked the ultra-reactionary Donald Trump for his support and stated that “to solve Colombia’s problems, we need to establish a very close alliance with the United States, which is not only our leading trading partner but also our most important strategic ally in the fight against organized crime,” aligning himself with Yankee imperialism and complying with the directive to intensify the fight against “narco-terrorism,” which, as is well known, is one of the pretexts used by Yankee imperialism to deploy its military interference in the region, subdue any opposition by force, and deepen its domination in Latin America.

Furthermore, he received the backing of the Nazi-Zionist of “Israel”: the genocidal Netanyahu stated, “Congratulations to President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella. I look forward to working with you to strengthen the bond between Israel and Colombia. Israel’s friends continue to prevail.” The government program of the country-selling Abelardo focuses its foreign policy on strengthening relations with Yankee imperialism and “Israel.”

Continuation and Intensification of the Counterinsurgency War

Throughout his candidacy, Abelardo has laid out his plans to further subjugate the country to Yankee imperialism. His government’s policies and rhetoric have focused on security and the fight against drug trafficking and the insurgency. In one of his statements, he announced that “as of August 7th, Colombia will be part of the Shield of the Americas. Colombia will NO longer be governed by a government that is complacent toward narco-terrorism; we will begin to combat it as we should.” The aforementioned Shield of the Americas is a regional coalition created by Trump to align Latin American countries with his plans for greater subjugation on the continent.

Furthermore, the reactionary Abelardo de la Espriella claims that he will begin spraying coca crops with glyphosate, that he will continue and expand the bombing raids to all guerrilla camps using all available technology, and that he will bomb all speedboats leaving through the Caribbean. This is nothing more than carrying out the work that the Yankees and their lackeys were already doing.

This alignment of the reactionary Abelardo with Yankee imperialism—on matters of security and the “fight against narco-terrorism”—is reflected in his government program, in which he announces the launch of a Plan Colombia 2.0 with the support of the two most genocidal countries in the world, the United States and “Israel.”

Plan Colombia, implemented by the US in 2000, was a clear US military intervention in Colombia under the pretext of the war on drugs, but in reality, it served to wage a counterinsurgency war—or a low-intensity war—in the country. This war resulted in severe repression of the peasant and popular movements, during which so-called “false positives” occurred and the old State, along with its military and paramilitary forces, committed grave crimes against the Colombian people. This Plan was a 1.3 billion USD “aid” package approved by the United States for Colombia, of which 80% was allocated to strengthening the armed forces and the remaining 20% to economic and social assistance, according to the Truth Commission.

But this deepening of the doctrine of counterinsurgency and the “internal enemy” is not limited to the guerrilla movement; it extends to social and popular movements as well, as Abelardo has made several statements regarding increased repression and militarization against popular and combative protests. In his platform, he announces the construction of seven mega-prisons, in the style of Bukele, and has stated in an interview that “anyone who comes to set a police officer on fire or burn down a CAI must be killed,” and that if there are roadblocks and “vandalism,” they will have to face the fury of the “tiger.”

The election of a far-right representative in our country is not an isolated event; it coincides with the trend in Latin America toward establishing governments that are even more country-selling and more of a lackey to Yankee imperialism—governments that comply with its directives much more obediently and guarantee the plans that Yankee imperialism has for the region.