Colombian President Gustavo Petro said his government will terminate the country’s status as a global partner of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, ending a relationship that dates from 2018 and made Colombia the alliance’s only partner in Latin America. Speaking at an International Conference on Gaza that concluded in Bogotá on 17 July, Petro linked the decision to what he called NATO’s support for military actions in the Middle East. He argued that Colombian coal "will not become bombs to kill Gazan children" and said the country should seek alternative relationships rather than align with armies that "drop bombs on children." Colombia’s 2018 partnership agreement with NATO, signed under former president Juan Manuel Santos and expanded under subsequent administrations, included cooperation on interoperability, information security and defense training. Petro did not specify a timeline for withdrawal, and NATO has not yet responded publicly to the announcement.