US revokes visas of more than 60 officials from Bolivia and Colombia over drug trafficking
Washington revoked visas of more than 60 senior officials from Bolivia and Colombia over alleged links to drug trafficking and corruption.
More than 40 Bolivians among those affected by new wave of visa cancellations
The United States State Department announced on Thursday the revocation of visas of more than sixty officials, senior figures and personalities from Bolivia and Colombia, according to nacion.com, over alleged links to drug trafficking and corruption.
"Today, the State Department is expanding its campaign against corruption and drug trafficking in our region," said Secretary of State Marco Rubio in an official statement.
In Bolivia, forty citizens lost the right to enter or transit through United States territory. Among those affected are judge Julio Alba Flores and magistrate Aldo Quezada, both based in Santa Cruz, as well as several legislators and former Attorney General Juan Lanchipa Ponce.
Also on the list are Julio César Porras Velarde, co-ordinating prosecutor of the Controlled Substances Unit in Santa Cruz, and Rony Suárez Milliet, under investigation as part of international inquiries related to Uruguayan drug trafficker Sebastián Marset.
The measure adds to a previous action: at the end of September, Washington had already revoked the visa of around twenty senior Bolivian officials, including Attorney General Roger Mariaca, who was detained by police shortly after.
In the case of Colombia, the 21 affected include Ricardo Roa Barragán, former president of state-owned oil company Ecopetrol and former manager of Gustavo Petro's 2022 presidential campaign. Also appearing are the mayor of Sincelejo, Yahir Acuña, and elected senator Wadith Manzur, whose taking office did not come to pass following his detention ordered by the courts in March.
Rubio also recalled that the leaders of the Shield of the Americas alliance—an initiative promoted by President Donald Trump to combat organised crime on the continent—agreed to intensify joint efforts in the region. Colombia joined that alliance following the coming to power of President Abelardo de la Espriella, who defeated Petro in the latest presidential elections.
Source: Google News BO — Crime