Biden and Petro also discussed “bilateral security and counter-narcotics cooperation.”
Washington: US President Joe Biden congratulated Colombia’s new leftist president, Gustavo Petro, on his election victory in a phone call Tuesday, the White House said.
Biden “underscored that he looks forward to working with the president-elect to continue strengthening bilateral cooperation, including on climate change, health security, and implementation” of Colombia’s peace accord with leftwing militants, the White House said.
They also discussed “bilateral security and counter-narcotics cooperation.”
Petro, himself a former guerrilla, was elected the first-ever leftist president of Colombia on Sunday, after beating millionaire businessman Rodolfo Hernandez in a tense and unpredictable runoff election.
His victory adds to an apparent groundswell for leftist forces in Latin America and charts new ground in a country long entwined with US foreign policy as a hotbed of drug manufacturing and violent insurgencies.
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