A few days after the first five months of the Government of Gustavo Petro, the balances and comparisons in the management of this and the past government have not been long in coming. This is why David Castrillón Kerrigan, a professor and researcher at the Externado University, and a foreign policy expert, who currently works on the relationship between China and the United States, published on Twitter an analysis of how the appointments made by the current Government in the Chancellery.
Among the data that Professor Castrillón was able to collect and compare, it is possible to see that, as he had promised in the campaign, the Petro government would be prioritizing, when designating and appointing officials in the different Colombian embassies around the world, professionals who do part of the diplomatic career. A process that has advanced in recent years, and that under the administration of Iván Duque, also presented important advances.
It may interest you: Tuitero compares and analyzes the appointments of Petro and Duque in the Foreign Ministry, what did he find?
To delve into the data that Castrillón has collected, Infobae spoke with the professor and researcher, who also pondered the changes that the national government is carrying out in its foreign policy, as well as some modifications in the paradigms, such as the respice polumthat look to the north that Marco Fidel Suárez raised at the beginning of the 20th century to prioritize relations with the United States.
With these first data, can it be affirmed that the Government of Gustavo Petro is betting on strengthening the diplomatic career?
Indeed. Yes. On the one hand, we know, even since the campaign, that this is a government… or well, that Petro has had the intention of increasing the number of career people who are in positions as ambassadors, even very much above the minimum established by law.
The numbers have really been around 20%, with Duque, in some cases we saw that it rose to 30%, but with Petro we understand that he wants to take that far above what we have seen now. If I remember correctly, in the candidacy there was talk of 50%, and above all there was talk of increasing the number of women who assume this type of high positions.
Since the beginning of the Government, with the arrival of the chancellor, in the first meetings he had with the staff of the Chancellery we also had a reaffirmation of that promise, of that commitment. Now what we are seeing in this first closing of the year is that the data confirm it, relative to what the experience with Duque was.
We are seeing that the number of career people has been increasing and that this is not only happening at the ambassador level, but also in other positions. Many times these positions are lost sight of, but there we are also seeing that reaffirmation, that strengthening of the career, and that confidence that is had in the career personnel for those positions.
We are still very early. There are things missing, but that’s what we see, initially because of the data.
Traditionally, many of the embassies are assigned to do political favors, or to keep those politicians ‘away’ who may have some interference in the reality of the country. With the data you have collected, can you think that a change in this paradigm is taking place?
I don’t want to answer yes or no. Because neither yes nor no. Because the paradigm shift that we are seeing is that this is a government that knows that foreign policy is at the center of all its intentions, its objectives and purposes.
Again, since the campaign, and with the start of the government, we are talking about making Colombia a world power for life and that implies having a foreign policy that works and works well.
We have seen that the government has made some important moves on foreign policy issues: the normalization of relations with Venezuela; champion, in a certain way, the issue of climate change in the region, and possibly lead a change in drug policy.
So, for all that, that is where the paradigm shift is: in the importance of foreign policy for this government.
In what we have seen about personnel changes, the data could suggest that to make foreign policy effective, the necessary changes are taking place there as well, but it is still too early to know if the changes are going to take place as planned. are waiting.
Something that seems very important to me is that this is also a government that has mentioned, from the beginning, its interest in serving the interests of Colombians abroad and that is why we are not only interested in seeing what happens with diplomatic posts, but also with consulars. There, in consular posts, we are seeing career people, clearly, but also people who are not career but who know the communities that live in the countries in which they are going to serve.
Since you mention the leading role that the national government is giving to foreign policy, could we also talk about a change in the respice polum?
If the answer is yes. Specifically, we are seeing a government that knows where it wants to go and that understands the step by step to get there in a way that is convenient for the country. This is a government that says, for example, that it attaches great importance to regional integration, that it understands Colombia as a country from the global South, that it has to contribute from the global South, but it knows that to get there it must be careful.
That is because the reality is that the United States continues to be our most important partner, in trade issues, in defense issues, and in other matters, US support will be important for many of the Government’s purposes: the energy transition, the negotiations of peace… So, I believe that what we are seeing is a very pragmatic government, which is taking care of its relationship with the United States, is balancing the inevitability of our relationship with the United States, while at the same time advancing towards a more sensible.
A foreign policy, which we would expect, would be more diversified, paying more attention to the African and Asian continents and, of course, our own region. He’s doing both at the same time and I think that’s very healthy, because too much of one thing, too much of the other, would lead to failure.
In the data that he published a few days ago, there is one that draws attention and that is that, geographically, America continues to be a priority in the foreign policy of the Colombian State, which together with the political changes that have taken place in recent months in South America, Lula’s position, the most recent and which consolidated this lucky turn to the left again. Do you see it feasible for Petro to position itself as a leader that promotes this change in the Latin American integration paradigm?
Yes. And it’s already doing it. This is a government that has put important issues on the regional agenda such as the change in drug policy, the compensation within the energy transition to face climate change. In this sense, we are already seeing that the Government is putting the issues on the table, which now the governments of the region, or the persistent ones or the new ones, are also replicating.
Of course, there is going to be a debate there, it is not that Petro talks about it and does everything, but we are seeing at least through that filter, setting the agenda is already having an impact. We are seeing it, but we do have many doubts, I must say, about how you will want to work and with whom it will be possible to do it.
Specifically, in the region we have many integration and consultation mechanisms such as the Pacific Alliance, CELAC… we do not know by which, or by which mechanisms, this government will want to advance issue by issue. I guess it will depend on the topic. And the same about who can work with what. I think we are in a moment of change, but it is the intention of this government to contribute and lead where it can.
Do you see the government of Gustavo Petro with more scope to consolidate this integration in the region, compared to that of Iván Duque, who tried to do it with the Lima Group and the Diplomatic Siege to weaken the Nicolás Maduro regime?
Absolutely. Yes, precisely in the Venezuelan case, because unfortunately the policy that was maintained towards Venezuela in the previous government prevented Colombia from taking a more active role at the regional level. We saw examples like those of the Lima Group where there were important decisions, we saw it with PROSUR’s attempt, but, well, in the end we see that that failed. What stayed there
In this case… that’s why the normalization of relations with Venezuela was such a priority from day one that this government arrived. Because it is understood that to have true regional integration you have to have everyone sitting at the table.
In this sense, we do see that there is more room for maneuver and I would also add one more thing that seems important to me: I think that the region, at this moment, sees or is aware that we are facing a very complex international context: we are facing recessions; we continue to see increases, high inflation rates; we are seeing setbacks in issues such as poverty and others. And that then also means that the region not only wants to integrate to address these challenges, but must integrate to address these challenges. There is also a need and I think people who have ideas to contribute to be heard and we are seeing it with the president.
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