Colombia’s Foreign Ministry ordered the expulsion of Argentina’s ambassador after his president, Javier Milei called his Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, a “terrorist assassin.”
Ambassador Gustavo Dzugala and his staff will have 72 hours to leave Colombia.
According to the Foreign Ministry, “the comments of the Argentine president have deteriorated the trust of our nation and, moreover, offended the dignity of President Petro, who was elected democratically.”
The Foreign Ministry took the decision in response to a preview of a CNN interview with Milei in which the Argentine president insulted Petro over his past as a member of guerrilla group M19.
“It’s not the first time that Mr. Milei offends the Colombian leader, affecting the historically brotherly relations between Colombia and Argentina,” said the Foreign Ministry.
In January, Petro recalled his ambassador to Buenos Aires after Milei called him a murderer for a second time since taking office last year.
The Argentina president, a far-right politician, has spoken disparagingly about his leftist counterparts in Latin America on multiple occasions.