Colombia quake: president asks Trump to suspend tariffs

Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella asked US President Donald Trump to temporarily suspend tariffs on Colombian products as the country deals with a deadly earthquake.

De la Espriella said on X that he had asked Trump to consider suspending the tariffs to give relief to Colombian business owners facing difficult conditions because of the quake. US tariffs on Colombian products rose from 10 percent to 12.5 percent in late July, with some exceptions including coffee and oil.

De la Espriella said he spoke with Trump for about 10 minutes and that Trump expressed condolences over deaths from Monday's 7.4-magnitude quake. He described the conversation as friendly and cordial.

Authorities have said the quake killed at least 294 people, injured nearly 4,000 and left at least 320 people unaccounted for. The latest account described nearly 300 deaths and said the tremor devastated the western cities of Cali and Pereira and destroyed almost 13,000 homes.

Trump endorsed De la Espriella, a right-wing millionaire lawyer-turned-politician, during his presidential run. Since taking office, De la Espriella has joined the Shield of the Americas, an anti-cartel alliance headed by Trump and including pro-US governments in Latin America. He also plans to forge a military alliance with the United States and Israel to support his campaign against guerrillas.