U.S. Congress approves $471 million budget for Colombia

In the last few hours it became known that the US Congress approved the appropriation law in fiscal year 2022, and for Colombia, a cooperation fund amounting to $471.3 million was allocated.

Ambassador Juan Carlos Pinzón announced the following news: “These resources reach issues of social development, rural development, alternative development, but strengthen justice, the fight against crime. Resources arrive for African descendants and indigenous peoples, and also resources to strengthen the armed forces with various capacities, including secession, and most of these resources also remain in the subsequent administration of Colombia.”

This represents an increase of 10 million dollars from the previous year's budget, and an increase of 17.5 million dollars more than the Biden administration requested.

In this regard, President Iván Duque pondered the following announcement on his Twitter account: “As the government of President Joe Biden allocates the highest budget for 10 years to Colombia, we have ratified the excellent cooperative relationship between our country and confirmed that we are the mostimportant allies of the United States in the hemisphere”.

He said, “The amount allocated for this year is $47.13 million, 10 million more than the 2021 budget. It is an important contribution that we appreciate and that will be reflected in the investment to strengthen the fight against drug trafficking and care for the most vulnerable.”

It was also learned that after the reconciliation process of the texts approved in the US House of Representatives and Senate, some provisions were omitted and submitted in some sections of the House of Representatives.

According to information from RCN Radio, the Embassy of Colombia stated that “provisions detrimental to the security interests of Colombia and the reputation of the Colombian police and military have been excluded from the final text of the law.”

That is, in this law, the funds provided to Colombia will be transferred without prohibiting support for Esmad. In addition, there will be no “negative report on the military retired in Colombia as a result of the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse”.

Similarly, “the holding of international military financial accounts that rely on the annual certification of human rights” will not increase by 10%, and “30% of funds will not be withheld as anti-drug agents under the annual human rights certification,” the embassy said in a statement.

According to information from RCN Radio, the Colombian Embassy in Washington will meet with the US Senate and House of Representatives to obtain an amendment proposed by the House of Representatives to ensure that the defense fund against Colombia is subject to verification protection of human rights following the 2019 US protests.

It is worth recalling that last week, President Duque pondered that Colombia was designated as NATO's strategic ally at the end of his meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House.

“I would like to thank President @JoeBiden for this important meeting and for designating our country as a strategic ally rather than a NATO member. Today, we have raised our relationship between the two countries to the highest level, making Colombia a key American partner in Latin America.”

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