Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem met with far-left President of Colombia Gustavo Petro and other local government officials in Bogotá on Thursday evening to discuss security, the fight against drug trafficking, migration, and the repatriation of illegal Colombian migrants in the United States.
Noem is conducting a three-day tour of El Salvador, Colombia, and Mexico. The DHS Secretary arrived in Bogotá after travelling to El Salvador, where she visited the Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT) “mega-prison” and met with President Nayib Bukele.
The Colombian presidency announced that during Noem’s visit, both countries signed a declaration of intent for biometric cooperation which will allow for a more efficient exchange of biometric data to identify criminals and prevent their transit across borders. The Colombian presidency pointed out that the cooperation between Colombia and the U.S. has resulted in over 1,700 deportations and over 1,000 arrests, “strengthening joint efforts in security and immigration control” and consolidating the “cooperation that has united Colombia and the United States for more than 200 years.”
“With Mrs. Kristi Noem, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security. We talked at length about homeland security. I think she loved Colombia,” Petro wrote on Twitter.
While Noem and Petro’s meeting was conducted behind closed doors, unnamed Colombian presidential palace sources confirmed to the local newspaper El Espectador that both sides discussed the issue of the fight against drug trafficking and the possibility that the United States will take away Colombia’s certification in this matter.
According to El Espectator, the U.S. delegation insisted the amount of hectares producing coca leaf plantations is worrisome, while the Petro administration insisted on not reactivating fumigations and rescuing its initiative to have coca leaf growers voluntarily replace their crops. Coca leaves are the main ingredient used in the production of cocaine. Petro’s policies have resulted in record amounts of cocaine produced in Colombia in more than two decades as of 2023.
Hours before Noem’s meeting with Petro, the DHS Secretary met with Colombia’s Foreign Minister Laura Sarabia and signed the letter of intent of the Biometric Data Exchange Program. Noem referred to Sarabia as “her friend” and reaffirmed the joint work on trafficking, migration and organized crime issues.
Laura Sarabia, Colombia’s foreign minister, left, and Kristi Noem, secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), sign a statement of intent during a meeting at the Chancellery in Bogota, Colombia, on Thursday, March 27, 2025. (Ivan Valencia/Bloomberg via Getty)
“I saw the beautiful flowers, your spectacular coffee. And I hope, because you are going to see me many more times here, to continue working together with the Colombians because of the importance of your work, ensuring that we are going to face security issues together,” Secretary Noem said. “Thank you very, very much Laura, my friend, for everything that has been done.”
Sarabia, for her part, highlighted “an honest, frank and friendly dialogue that seeks to further strengthen the ties of cooperation between the two countries and the guarantee of the human rights of our nationals.”
“I really appreciate your visit to the country, your frank and honest dialogue and that we can have a conversation between women and that we can move forward on the issues that concern both countries,” Sarabia said.
“This letter of intent is one more step to be able to establish specific, realistic and effective measures that guarantee at the same time the consolidation of our friendly relationship with the United States and the guarantee that the human rights and dignity of migrants are effectively respected,” she added.
Noem’s visit to Colombia comes roughly two months after President Gustavo Petro caused a short-lived diplomatic crisis between Colombia and the United States in January after he abruptly refused to accept a U.S. deportation flight of Colombian migrants. At the time, President Donald Trump responded to Petro’s actions with a barrage of retaliatory measures that Petro responded to in a long, incoherent Twitter rant. Hours later, the Colombian government announced that it had “agreed to all” of President Trump’s terms.
DHS Secretary Noem will travel to Mexico on Friday to meet with President Claudia Sheinbaum and Foreign Minister Juan Ramon De La Fuente.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
Read the full article here
