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 | |
 Colombia |  Russia |
|---|---|
| Envoy | |
| AmbassadorRafael Francisco Amador Campos | AmbassadorNikolai Karlovich Tavdumadze |
Colombia–Russia relations are thebilateral relations between the Republic ofColombia and theRussian Federation. Colombia first establisheddiplomatic relations on 25 June 1935 when Russia was then a part of theSoviet Union. Colombia then severed relations with the Soviet Union on 3 May 1948 as a result of theBogotazo,[1] but was restored back to normal on 19 January 1968.
Colombia has an embassy inMoscow and Russia has an embassy inBogotá.
On 3 October 2008, Colombia—considered one of the closest U.S. allies in Latin America—sent its defense minister to Russia for the first time to discuss signing a new military cooperation accord.[citation needed] Defense minister (and future president)Juan Manuel Santos arrived in Russia on Oct. 6 to attend anInterpol police conference and meet with his Russian counterpartAnatoly Serdyukov, along with Colombia's Ambassador to Russia, Diego José Tobón Echeverri.
Alquin "is the first Colombian defense minister to make an official visit to Russia, which is of major significance for relations between the two countries", the Colombian presidency said on its web site. Talks focused on cooperation in fighting the drugs trade, terrorism and a new defense accord, it said.
Colombian Vice-President Francisco Santos said during a visit to Russia in June that his country wants to buy fighter and transport helicopters and radar systems as it broadens its sources of defense equipment. The defense minister will attend a demonstration of Russian weaponry during his week-long visit, the presidency in Bogota said.
Colombia's efforts to court Russia came after it voiced concerns about billions of dollars in Russian arms sales to neighboringVenezuela, where PresidentHugo Chávez proclaimed a goal of countering U.S. influence in Latin America and was accused by Colombia of arming FARC rebels.[2]
On 1 November 2013, theColombian Air Force intercepted twoTu-160s of the Russian Air Force that were flying over Colombianairspace without previous governmental clearance. The two blackjacks, as code named by theNATO, were escorted out of Colombian airspace soon after and a note of protest was sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia to Moscow.[3]
In December 2020, Juan Francisco Espinosa, head of Colombia's migration agency said that two Russian diplomats were expelled after being accused of trying to obtain military intelligence and information about the energy industry and mineral commodities.[4]
During the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Colombian presidentIván Duque affirmed his support forUkraine during a phone call with Ukrainian presidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy, condemning Russia's aggression by stating that, "Colombia has been firm with its voice condemning this opprobrium, it has done so in all multilateral instances and all diplomatic channels as the only NATO partner in Latin America and the Caribbean.“[5]
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