The Trump administration is deepening its military ties to Colombia's new government, led by far-right President Abelardo de la Espriella. Last week, head of US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), Gen. Francis L. Donavan, visited the country to meet with defense officials. Donavan vowed to help rehabilitate Colombia's air fleet, and travelled to southwestern regions that are havens for drug traffickers and armed groups. He also crossed into an Ecuadorian border town and attended a meeting between Colombian and Ecuadorian defense officials, who reportedly discussed the creation of a binational military base along the border. (NACLA Update)

Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella has shut down all peace talks with armed groups, formally ending his predecessor's "Total Peace" plan, which aimed to move away from military solutions to the internal armed conflict. Backed by US President Donald Trump, the new leader has adopted a hardline stance that has raised controversy since he posted a video of himself walking among the body bags of 23 guerrillas, including three children, killed in a military operation against "dissident" FARC rebels in Guaviare department on Aug. 27. (TNH)

The Trump administration's allied governments joined the president and his key staff in New York City for a meeting of the "Shield of Americas" group on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting Sept. 22. During his remarks, he asked allied nations to formally classify the region's key criminal organizations as terrorists. Trump also pushed for stronger sanctions against criminal groups. In a joint statement, US allies across the region indicated that they would soon deepen sanctions and label 25 criminal organizations as "terrorist organizations," though this remains for now a largely symbolic promise due to legal constraints in each country. (NACLA Update)

Colombia's far-right president, Abelardo de la Espriella added a new feature to his mano dura propaganda videos. On Sept. 23, De la Espriella published a video of his visit to the city of Santa Marta, the site of a recent paramilitary armed strike, in which he is visibly armed with a pistol. The stunt came mere weeks after the president lifted restrictions on the carrying of firearms in public, prompting immediate backlash. The Santa Marta crisis began when a criminal organization shut down parts of the city and the surrounding region in response to a security operation that killed a high-ranking member on Sept. 21. De la Espriella militarized the city after the ACSN attacked local businesses, set cars on fire, and declared a halt to commercial activity. Troops patrolled the streets, fighter jets flew over the city, and the president himself visited affected neighborhoods. Nevertheless, the day after his visit, many businesses remained shuttered, the city remained largely dormant, and his video set off a debate about what it means for the president to carry a weapon. (NACLA Update)