TOPIC

/ location

Colombia

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Colombia. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Bogotá

Head of State

President Gustavo Petro

Head of Government

President Gustavo Petro

Abelardo de la Espriella speaks to supporters from behind bullet-proof glass after preliminary results showed him narrowly winning Colombia’s presidential run-off election. Photo: AFP

China-Latin America relations

China extends hand to Colombia’s Trump-backed president-elect

Beijing offers to work with de la Espriella in spite of his firm’s legal clash over the metro with a Chinese group and his US realignment vow.

10 minutes agovideocam

Americas and the Caribbean

Trump-backed ‘El Tigre’ wins Colombia presidential election

22 Jun 2026 - 3:33PM

Americas and the Caribbean

Colombians vote for president amid corruption fears, polarisation

21 Jun 2026 - 6:02PM

China-Latin America relations

China says US ‘invented’ terrorism charges to justify Cuba blockade

Foreign ministry rebutted Marco Rubio’s claim that Cuba sponsors terrorism and demanded an end to US sanctions on the island.

5 Jun 2026 - 10:03AMvideocam

A portrait of former Cuban leader Raul Castro is seen in Havana, as Cuba grapples with economic hardship and renewed pressure from Washington. Photo: Reuters

Americas and the Caribbean

Behind bulletproof glass: pro-Trump showman has edge in Colombia presidential race

Abelardo de la Espriella to face Ivan Cepeda in June 21 run-off following a violent and highly polarised first-round.

1 Jun 2026 - 1:47PM

Spain

‘8-year-ordeal’: Spanish court acquits pop star Shakira of tax fraud

Money the Colombian singer paid in fines - plus interest - will be paid back to her after a lengthy dispute over residency.

18 May 2026 - 8:55PM

Science

Global food and water supplies on thin ice as Argentina opens glaciers to mining

Scientists warn that allowing access to deposits near vital ice reserves threatens food production sustaining 400 million people.

10 May 2026 - 6:00AMvideocam

Argentina’s 16,000 glaciers form a vital freshwater reserve for the country, a major food exporter. Photo: AFP

Americas and the Caribbean

Birthday girl among 3 crushed to death by monster truck in Colombia

Spectacle turns to tragedy as driver performing a wheelie crashes into barriers separating the public from the track.

5 May 2026 - 11:35AM

Climate change

Tropical forest loss still 11 football fields a minute – or Denmark per year

Researchers warn that fires fuelled by climate change are a dangerous new normal and could reverse gains made in tackling deforestation.

29 Apr 2026 - 9:35PMvideocam

US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | Trump’s oil crisis is accelerating the end of the fossil fuel era

Ironically for president ‘drill, baby, drill’, this crisis may prove an irreversible tipping point for clean energy.

26 Apr 2026 - 3:00PM

An oil tanker burns off the coast of Iraq after being hit by an Iranian strike last month amid the US-Israel war on Iran. Photo: AP

Americas and the Caribbean

Explosive device kills 20 and injures 36 on bus in Colombia

At least 26 such incidents have taken place in the last two days, amid a wave of violence linked to drug-trafficking.

27 Apr 2026 - 7:27AM

Relatives of victims embrace in front of a bus hit by an explosive device in Cajibio, Colombia on Saturday. Photo: AP

Hong Kong society

New York’s Met to debut glittering global jewellery exhibition in Hong Kong

From golden headdresses to diamond brooches, the Hong Kong Palace Museum will showcase some 200 pieces spanning 4,000 years and five continents.

14 Apr 2026 - 7:03PM

Americas and the Caribbean

Peru presidential run-off looms as Fujimori leads troubled vote

Daughter of former strongman is ahead in the race, but logistical issues have forced a one-day voting extension for tens of thousands.

13 Apr 2026 - 6:18PMvideocam

Americas and the Caribbean

Peru set to choose from a bewildering array of 35 presidential hopefuls

Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori holds first place ⁠in the polls ⁠one week before Peru’s presidential election.

8 Apr 2026 - 5:00PM

Peruvian presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori. Photo: Reuters

US-Venezuela conflict

US reopens embassy in Venezuela months after military operation to remove Maduro

The State Department said normal operations had resumed at the Caracas embassy after a 7-year closure that began during Trump’s first term.

31 Mar 2026 - 3:45AM

The US embassy in Caracas, Venezuela on Monday. The State Department said Washington had officially resumed operations at the embassy. Photo: EPA

Aviation accidents

At least 66 dead as Colombia military plane crashes after take-off

Death toll rises from a Hercules C-130 transport plane crash deep in Colombia’s southern Amazon region.

24 Mar 2026 - 1:46PM

Middle East

Letters | As the US attacks Iran, the ancient Battle of Carrhae offers lessons

Readers discuss the war in the Middle East, the opportunity for Colombians in Hong Kong to vote, the importance of teacher well-being, and the poon choi tradition.

6 Mar 2026 - 11:30AM

Americas and the Caribbean

Colombia’s president says he escaped assassination attempt while in helicopter

Gustavo Petro says his helicopter had to evade people who ‘were going to shoot’ at it, forcing him to fly over open sea for hours.

11 Feb 2026 - 1:13PM

President Gustavo Petro in the cockpit of one of the 12 Black Hawk helicopters donated by the US government in 2022. Photo: Colombian Presidency via AFP

China’s private sector

Luckin’s 30,000th store milestone adds buzz to China’s brewing coffee battle

Xiamen-headquartered chain pushes to integrate supply network worldwide and accelerate growth in markets from Asia to the US.

9 Feb 2026 - 7:04PM

Donald Trump

Trump and Colombia’s Petro appear to bury hatchet after months of tensions

US president calls Gustavo Petro ‘terrific’ after their first face-to-face encounter, following months of trading barbs.

4 Feb 2026 - 12:16PM

Aviation accidents

Plane crash in Colombia kills 15, including politician

A Colombian lawmaker and a legislative candidate were on the twin-propeller plane that crashed in a mountainous region.

29 Jan 2026 - 11:17AM

Wreckage of the crashed aircraft in northeastern Colombia. Photo: RTVC Noticias via Xinhua

Spain

Spain busts cocaine trafficking ring that used ‘floating bases’ at sea

Spain seizes 10 tonnes of drugs and arrests 105 suspects, while Portugal intercepts a record haul from a ‘narco-sub’.

27 Jan 2026 - 1:17PM

A semi-submersible craft carrying cocaine that was intercepted off the Azores archipelago by Portuguese authorities. Photo: Forca Aerea Portuguesa via AFP

Crime

Ex-Olympian pleads not guilty to running billion-dollar drug empire

Lawyer for FBI ‘most wanted’ fugitive denies alleged kingpin turned himself in at the US embassy in Mexico.

27 Jan 2026 - 10:55AM

Commodities

Gold surge has analysts eyeing new highs after US$5,100 record

Safe-haven demand spikes amid de-dollarisation fears and supply-chain tensions, as gold buyers seek stability against growing macro uncertainties.

26 Jan 2026 - 3:07PMvideocam

United States

Who is Ryan Wedding? Ex-Olympian accused of running global drug empire arrested

Fugitive Canadian snowboarder from the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics is linked to cartels and faces murder and drug charges.

24 Jan 2026 - 12:00AM

Ryan Wedding during a practice run for the men’s parallel
giant slalom at the 2002 Winter Games. Photo: Reuters

United States

Opinion | From Venezuela to Greenland, Trump is using US power to rewrite the rules

What troubles many is the inconsistency emanating from Washington. When power underwrites rules, principles become negotiable.

23 Jan 2026 - 9:30AMvideocam

Donald Trump

Diversify or die: Asian firms face trade uncertainty amid Trump’s Mexico threats

The president’s call for strikes against drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia will add to the cost of trading with the US, analysts say.

20 Jan 2026 - 7:00PMvideocam

United States

US’ FAA warns airlines to ‘potential risks’ in Mexican, South American airspace

The warnings come a month after a JetBlue passenger jet almost collided with a US Air Force tanker plane near Venezuela ‌.

17 Jan 2026 - 12:34PMvideocam

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Colombia

China extends hand to Colombia’s Trump-backed president-elect

Beijing offers to work with de la Espriella in spite of his firm’s legal clash over the metro with a Chinese group and his US realignment vow.

Trump-backed ‘El Tigre’ wins Colombia presidential election

Colombians vote for president amid corruption fears, polarisation

China says US ‘invented’ terrorism charges to justify Cuba blockade

Foreign ministry rebutted Marco Rubio’s claim that Cuba sponsors terrorism and demanded an end to US sanctions on the island.

Behind bulletproof glass: pro-Trump showman has edge in Colombia presidential race

Abelardo de la Espriella to face Ivan Cepeda in June 21 run-off following a violent and highly polarised first-round.

‘8-year-ordeal’: Spanish court acquits pop star Shakira of tax fraud

Money the Colombian singer paid in fines - plus interest - will be paid back to her after a lengthy dispute over residency.

Global food and water supplies on thin ice as Argentina opens glaciers to mining

Scientists warn that allowing access to deposits near vital ice reserves threatens food production sustaining 400 million people.

Birthday girl among 3 crushed to death by monster truck in Colombia

Spectacle turns to tragedy as driver performing a wheelie crashes into barriers separating the public from the track.

Tropical forest loss still 11 football fields a minute – or Denmark per year

Researchers warn that fires fuelled by climate change are a dangerous new normal and could reverse gains made in tackling deforestation.

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Opinion | Trump’s oil crisis is accelerating the end of the fossil fuel era

Ironically for president ‘drill, baby, drill’, this crisis may prove an irreversible tipping point for clean energy.

Explosive device kills 20 and injures 36 on bus in Colombia

At least 26 such incidents have taken place in the last two days, amid a wave of violence linked to drug-trafficking.

New York’s Met to debut glittering global jewellery exhibition in Hong Kong

From golden headdresses to diamond brooches, the Hong Kong Palace Museum will showcase some 200 pieces spanning 4,000 years and five continents.

Peru presidential run-off looms as Fujimori leads troubled vote

Daughter of former strongman is ahead in the race, but logistical issues have forced a one-day voting extension for tens of thousands.

Peru set to choose from a bewildering array of 35 presidential hopefuls

Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori holds first place ⁠in the polls ⁠one week before Peru’s presidential election.

US reopens embassy in Venezuela months after military operation to remove Maduro

The State Department said normal operations had resumed at the Caracas embassy after a 7-year closure that began during Trump’s first term.

At least 66 dead as Colombia military plane crashes after take-off

Death toll rises from a Hercules C-130 transport plane crash deep in Colombia’s southern Amazon region.

Letters | As the US attacks Iran, the ancient Battle of Carrhae offers lessons

Readers discuss the war in the Middle East, the opportunity for Colombians in Hong Kong to vote, the importance of teacher well-being, and the poon choi tradition.

Colombia’s president says he escaped assassination attempt while in helicopter

Gustavo Petro says his helicopter had to evade people who ‘were going to shoot’ at it, forcing him to fly over open sea for hours.

Luckin’s 30,000th store milestone adds buzz to China’s brewing coffee battle

Xiamen-headquartered chain pushes to integrate supply network worldwide and accelerate growth in markets from Asia to the US.

Trump and Colombia’s Petro appear to bury hatchet after months of tensions

US president calls Gustavo Petro ‘terrific’ after their first face-to-face encounter, following months of trading barbs.

Plane crash in Colombia kills 15, including politician

A Colombian lawmaker and a legislative candidate were on the twin-propeller plane that crashed in a mountainous region.

Spain busts cocaine trafficking ring that used ‘floating bases’ at sea

Spain seizes 10 tonnes of drugs and arrests 105 suspects, while Portugal intercepts a record haul from a ‘narco-sub’.

Ex-Olympian pleads not guilty to running billion-dollar drug empire

Lawyer for FBI ‘most wanted’ fugitive denies alleged kingpin turned himself in at the US embassy in Mexico.

Gold surge has analysts eyeing new highs after US$5,100 record

Safe-haven demand spikes amid de-dollarisation fears and supply-chain tensions, as gold buyers seek stability against growing macro uncertainties.

Who is Ryan Wedding? Ex-Olympian accused of running global drug empire arrested

Fugitive Canadian snowboarder from the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics is linked to cartels and faces murder and drug charges.

Opinion | From Venezuela to Greenland, Trump is using US power to rewrite the rules

What troubles many is the inconsistency emanating from Washington. When power underwrites rules, principles become negotiable.

Diversify or die: Asian firms face trade uncertainty amid Trump’s Mexico threats

The president’s call for strikes against drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia will add to the cost of trading with the US, analysts say.

US’ FAA warns airlines to ‘potential risks’ in Mexican, South American airspace

The warnings come a month after a JetBlue passenger jet almost collided with a US Air Force tanker plane near Venezuela ‌.

Opinion | Trump’s oil crisis is accelerating the end of the fossil fuel era