He This Saturday, the Colombian business sector expressed its concern about the decision of the Government of ban coal exports to Israel until it stops, according to the president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, “the genocide” that that country is committing against Palestine.
He president of the National Association of Businessmen of Colombia (Andi), Bruce Mac Master, He recalled that his country has a free trade agreement (FTA) in force with Israel, which is “nothing more nor less than an international treaty ratified by the congresses of the two countries.”
“However,Who loses when they stop selling a product that is a ‘commodity’? The buyer or the seller? Now, not to mention the right that Colombian exporters are violated by not allowing them to carry out their business activity,” added Mac Master on the X social network.
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He Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism published the draft of a decree which states that “exports to the State of Israel of hard coal and briquettes (coal) are prohibited.”
The The decision was made because the Government considers that “military operations against the Palestinian people represent a transgression to an imperative norm of international law, which in turn is part of the Colombian constitutional block.”
In that sense, the decree recalled that, according to the National Administrative Department of Statistics (Dane), coal is the main export product from Colombia to Israel.
“Between January and August 2023, Colombia exported 375 million dollars to Israel, with a considerable concentration in coal”, noted the information.
Of that total exported, “mining-energy (ME) products to this country are equivalent to 93%. This good is used as an energy supply and strategic resource for the manufacture of weapons, the mobilization of troops, the manufacture of supplies for military operations,” he added.
Qetro has shown himself to be a fervent defender of the Palestinian cause and has been very critical of Israel, which is a traditional supplier of weapons, military equipment, medical devices, machinery, security systems and chemical products to Colombia, which in turn exports mainly coal, coffee, flowers and candy.
On May 1, the president announced the breaking of diplomatic relations with Israel in rejection of what the president considers a “genocide” in Gaza.
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He president of the National Association of Foreign Trade (Analdex), Javier Díaz Molinastated that “the draft decree establishing a ban on coal exports to Israel is in violation of the Political Constitution and the National Development Plan, which is why it would be crossing these red lines.”
“Due to the arguments presented and in accordance with the considerations of the bill that proposes the prohibition of exports to Israel, it is concluded that said measure does not conform to the constitutional mandate nor is it based on a commercial policy reason,” he added.
In his opinion, the Government’s proposal “It is based on a measure of a moral nature that is not contemplated in Colombian legislation for customs and foreign trade matters.”
“The project does not comply with the provisions of the standard and, furthermore, said provision would only apply in the case of imports but is not provided for in the field of exports. Likewise, this violates the FTA that has been signed between both countries,” Díaz added.
Meanwhile, the president of the Colombian American Chamber (AmCham Colombia), María Claudia Lacouturebelieves that this decision will have repercussions on the economy of the Andean country.
“This measure increases legal uncertainty regarding compliance with current trade agreements, which could undermine investor confidence in the country,” Lacouture, who was Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism between 2016 and 2017, expressed in X.
