The political scientist assessed the consequences of Colombia's refusal to cooperate with NATO

Colombia's refusal to cooperate with NATO is unlikely to significantly affect the country's defense capability. Alexander Khazaridi, an expert at the Polylogue Group, stated this in an interview with Izvestia on July 17.

"The refusal to cooperate with NATO is unlikely to radically affect Colombia's defense capability. The main threat to the country is drug cartels and armed groups within the country. But the Colombian alliance has not provided any real help with these problems," the source said.

Khazaridi also stressed that the consequences of refusing to cooperate with the alliance would be rather symbolic. According to him, since 2018, Colombia has had the status of a global partner of NATO, which implied limited interaction — exchange of experience and joint exercises, but did not include obligations on collective defense.

"For Colombia, NATO resembled an elite club of interests rather than a real security system," the political scientist concluded.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced on July 16 that the country should abandon cooperation with the North Atlantic Alliance. He explained this by saying that his state cannot be associated with armies dropping bombs on children.