Colombia: the controversy unleashed by Duque’s defense minister after declaring Iran as a «common enemy»

Colombian Defense Minister Diego Molano has sparked a new controversy after describing Iran as a «common enemy» in a controversial statement that he offered from Israel and that put the international relations of the government of Iván Duque in trouble.

Molano’s statements took place during Duque’s official visit to Jerusalem, in which the president agreed with his Israeli counterpart, Isaac Herzog, to expand the agreements on military issues, cyber defense, border and aerospace security, as well as the exchange of information from strategic intelligence in «the fight against international terrorism», with special emphasis on the «border with Venezuela».

In a joint statement between Duque and Herzog, both agreed on the duty to «fight» against «terrorism» that, according to them, Hezbollah cells generate, as well as to collaborate in international efforts to stop the Iranian nuclear development plan.

On this, Herzog said that he hopes that Colombia can «help to fight diplomatically» against Tehran from the presidency of the Council of the International Atomic Energy Agency, while affirming that Tel Aviv knows that Bogotá is concerned about «the terrorist cells of Hezbollah. on the border with Venezuela».

Molano’s controversial statements occurred once the new agreements between Duque and Herzog were signed. “Here we have a common enemy and this is the case of Iran and Hezbollah, which operates against Israel but also supports the Venezuelan regime, and therefore, it is an important effort, as well as the  exchange of information and intelligence that we develop with the military forces and the Ministry of Defense in Israel», declared the Colombian minister.

Reactions in Colombia

The senator and candidate for the Presidency of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, was one of the first to react to Molano’s statement, noting that his words exposed Colombians to a possible war scenario.

«Minister Diego Molano, can Colombia consider a country with which it maintains diplomatic relations an enemy? Can a minister put us in warlike circumstances with a country that has never hurt us? «, wrote Petro on Twitter.

Similarly, Senator Luis Fernando Velasco said that it is «unforgivable» to declare Iran as an enemy and reminded Molano that, as Defense Minister, he does not have the power to establish political positions of this type, which should only be dictated by the Presidency and the Chancellery.

“It is inexcusable, on your part, to declare Iran an enemy of Colombia, I remind you that we have diplomatic relations with that country and you do not have the power to qualify another State as an enemy of ours. Rectify your mistake”, wrote Velasco.

Congressman José Daniel López also rejected Molano’s «recklessness» and asked him to rectify because one should not «buy unnecessary fights» with the Middle East. «The recklessness of Minister Diego Molano with the Iran issue is not trivial. Buying unnecessary fights in a region as troubled as the Middle East is not something that a sensible mind would do. Minister, please rectify”, he wrote.

Meanwhile, presidential candidate Roy Barreras warned that «for the first time in the history» of Colombia, a defense minister declared «irresponsibly» and «on his own behalf», Iran as an «enemy country». «What’s Next? Declare war on Iran? There are many countries with undesirable regimes and interests different from ours, but you don’t go around declaring them ‘enemies'», said Barreras.

In addition, the Comunes party urged the minister to «urgently carry out a basic diplomacy course for the Government» so as not to put the country at risk. «International relations serve to establish dialogues and build communication channels with other States and not to declare enmities. Or does Iran not have an embassy in our country?».

Duque’s clarification

President Duque took more than a day to clarify the qualification of «enemy» wielded in the controversial statements of Molano, who did not address the issue again, nor did the Colombian vice president and foreign minister, Marta Lucía Ramírez, who is on tour in Japan.

At first, Duque did not reject the statement in its entirety, stating that Molano’s words were intended to question Iran’s political support for Hezbollah.

“Colombia has maintained diplomatic relations with Iran, but Colombia is very clear on what the terrorist threats are, and that is why, in the same diplomatic dialogue, we have the ability to ask many countries what type of relationship they may have with those (terrorists) units», said Duque a couple of hours after Molano’s intervention, according to local media.

However, this Tuesday, the president clarified – albeit with his warnings – that Colombia «does not use the word enemies to refer to any country», because «it is a nation that respects international law».

«Colombia has diplomatic relations with Iran, but that does not mean that we do not have differences on specific issues», said Duque, who explained that among those discrepancies are the «no development of nuclear weapons, no enrichment of uranium, or proliferation of nuclear arsenals».

From the Iranian side, for the moment, there have been no reactions on the polemic statements of the Colombian Defense Minister, who last week starred in another controversy related to the case of an alleged cyber attack that the Colombian Executive would have received during the massive protests against the Government of Duke at the beginning of the year.

According to the Freedom of the Press Foundation, Molano’s office – which denied the version – would have feigned and disclosed the alleged cyber attack as fake news with the aim of improving the image of the Government and justifying its cyber patrol policy, just when the Police forces and the Army were denounced for committing abuses and violations against the protester’s human rights..