With a promise to “relentlessly defeat narco-terrorism” and tighten Colombia’s finances, newly inaugurated President Abelardo De La Espriella took office in a ceremony that broke with tradition and signalled a hard-line turn in the country’s security strategy.
Mr De La Espriella, 48, was sworn in after winning June’s runoff on pledges to crack down on armed groups, cut the size of the state by as much as 40% and jump-start the oil and gas sector.
An ally of US President Donald Trump, he previously represented prominent right-wing paramilitaries during his career as a lawyer.
Mr De La Espriella has never before served in elected office.
“I have come to close a long chapter of national resignation and, together with the people, embark on the most profound transformation of our destiny,” Mr De La Espriella said at the Pichincha Battalion military base in Cali. He had been sworn in shortly beforehand at a nearby university auditorium, attended by dignitaries and officials.
Addressing troops during a 75-minute speech at the base, he vowed to “relentlessly defeat narco-terrorism”.
Mr De La Espriella said the country will builld ‘mega-prisons’
He said: “I send a firm message to the Colombian people: the time has come to restore order, authority, and freedom.
“Members of criminal gangs and narco-terrorist groups have two choices: submit to the rule of law or face the determined response of the Colombian state and its security forces.”
Mr De La Espriella said the possibility of peace talks with armed groups had been “completely exhausted”.
“The time has come to definitively eradicate the scourge of illicit crops,” he said, adding that his government would use aerial spraying of herbicides he said do not harm human health or the environment to destroy coca.
In one of his first acts as president, he said Colombia will join US President Donald Trump’s regional anti-cartel alliance known as Shield of the Americas.
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Mr De la Espriella, who holds dual US and Colombian citizenship, has offered to host US troops on Colombian soil and wants to bomb jungle cocaine labs, build “mega-prisons” and slash the size of the state.
He also promised to freeze public spending and pursue a tax reform aimed at simplifying the country’s payment regimen and boosting investment and employment, while keeping popular social programmes, including some introduced under former president Gustavo Petro.
Mr De La Espriella said: “I want to tell Colombia’s business leaders, large, medium-sized and small, that this government will be your partner in investing in Colombia.
“Once again, it will be a safe and profitable decision for you.”
FIFA boss Gianni Infantino was among the guests
In a departure from custom, the inauguration was held in Cali — Colombia’s salsa capital — rather than at Congress in the more formal setting of Bogota.
Among those in attendance was FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who has faced sharp criticism over his now-shelved proposal to open the World Cup and other competitions to private investment.
Other right-wing figures also attended, including Argentina’s President Javier Milei and Todd Blanche, Mr Trump’s acting attorney general, who led the US delegation.
Mr De la Espriella’s leftist predecessor, Mr Petro, did not attend the ceremony.
Earlier, Mr Petro departed the presidential residence in the capital, saying “farewell, freedom and life”.
Cali, which has endured several guerrilla attacks in recent years, saw heightened security for the event, including 11,000 troops and an anti-drone system.
Mr De la Espriella’s narrow win — by less than 1 percentage point — brought to a close four years of Colombia’s first-ever leftist government.
He now takes office facing a divided Congress where he does not have a majority.
Former president Gustavo Petro tried and failed to negotiate peace with the country’s armed groups
Supporters say they expect a tougher approach to crime and to dissident armed groups.
“This government has a lot to prove. A lot was said during the campaign,” 46-year-old Marisol Peira told AFP in Cali.
Mr Petro attempted — and failed — to negotiate peace with the country’s armed groups.
Experts say many gangs, once driven by ideology but now primarily focused on profits from cocaine trafficking and other illicit trades, used government truces as cover to expand.
Mr Petro, who has alleged election fraud without presenting evidence, urged mass protests in major cities. Hundreds of people then demonstrated peacefully in Bogota and Barranquilla.
Mr De la Espriella’s win adds to a string of recent electoral victories for Latin American right-wing leaders, from Chile to Costa Rica, powered in part by promises to restore security.
The former lawyer has said he wants to eliminate coca crops used for cocaine production “by all means”, supports the environmentally harmful practice of fracking, and plans to lower taxes for the rich.
Calling himself “The Tiger”, Mr De la Espriella says he intends to build a military alliance with the United States and Israel to support his campaign against guerrillas.
His “Plan Colombia II” echoes a multimillion-dollar agreement with Washington in the 2000s aimed at fighting drug cartels and leftist groups.
“We have to support him so there won’t be so much crime,” said German Angulo, a 63-year-old contractor.
“We need a complete change.”
Although the original “Plan Colombia” weakened key combat groups, it also prompted allegations of serious human rights abuses.
US State Department officials said they intend to work with Congress to approve a $1 billion (€865 million) assistance package for Colombia as the new right-wing president took office.
“As a cornerstone of this renewed partnership, the United States, working with Congress, intends to announce $1 billion in assistance as part of a security package to support President (Abdelardo) de la Espriella’s administration in achieving our shared goals,” the statement said.
