Colombia–Russia relations
Encyclopedia
Colombia–Russia relations refers to the bilateral
Bilateralism
Bilateralism consists of the political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. For example, free trade agreements signed by two states are examples of bilateral treaties. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which refers to the conduct of diplomacy by a...

 and foreign relations
Diplomacy
Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of groups or states...

 between the Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

 and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

. Diplomatic relations between Colombia and the USSR were established for the first time on June 25, 1935 (then severed on May 3, 1948, and restored back to normal on January 19, 1968). Colombia has an embassy in Moscow and Russia has an embassy in Bogotá.

Today

On October 3 , 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. Defense minister (and future president) Juan Manuel Santos
Juan Manuel Santos
Juan Manuel Santos Calderón is a Colombian politician who has been the President of Colombia since 7 August 2010. He previously served as Minister of Foreign Trade, Minister of Finance, and Minister of National Defense.-Career:...

 arrived in Russia on Oct. 6 to attend an Interpol
Interpol
Interpol, whose full name is the International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL, is an organization facilitating international police cooperation...

 police conference and meet with his Russian counterpart Anatoly Serdyukov, along with Colombia's Ambassador to Russia
Ambassador of Colombia to Russia
The Ambassador of Colombia to Russia is the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Colombia to the Russian Federation dually accredited as Non-Resident to the Republic of Belarus....

, Diego José Tobón Echeverri
Diego José Tobón Echeverri
Diego José Tobón Echeverri is a Colombian diplomat and is the current Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Colombia to the Russian Federation and Non-Resident Ambassador to the Republic of Belarus, presenting his Letters of Credence to President of Russia Vladimir Putin...

.

Santos "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 neighboring Venezuela, where President Hugo Chavez has proclaimed a goal of countering U.S. influence in Latin America and is accused by Colombia of arming FARC rebels.

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