The Executives of Colombia and the United States have signed this Tuesday two memorandums of understanding to strengthen collaboration in civil nuclear energy and in the field of critical minerals and rare earths, taking advantage of the visit to the South American country of the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio.
"These agreements are part of the efforts of our countries to revitalize the partnership between the United States and Colombia, which has more than 200 years of history, and to reestablish it as a fundamental pillar of security and economic cooperation in our hemisphere," highlights Rubio's office in a statement.
Marco on critical minerals and rare earths
Regarding the memorandum on critical minerals, a framework of cooperation is established between Washington and Bogotá to ensure "resilient, diversified, and fair supply chains of critical minerals and rare earths," with the commitment of both governments to "mobilize support from the public and private sectors," through "guarantees, loans, capital, purchase agreements, insurance, or regulatory facilitation" in order to identify and finance "jointly" extraction and processing projects "within six months from the signing."
The text promotes the "simplification" of procedures for granting permits, the creation of pricing mechanisms that protect the market -- such as minimum prices -- the development of national security assessment tools for the sale of assets linked to critical minerals, investment in recycling technologies, and cooperation in geological mapping.
Critical minerals are chemical elements present in nature whose demand has skyrocketed while their supply remains limited. They are commonly used in the manufacture of all kinds of technological devices, contributing to increased efficiency, performance, speed, durability, and thermal stability.
Their importance has increased due to their close connection with the energy transition: they are essential, for example, in photovoltaic solar panels and in batteries for electric vehicles. Among the most demanded are aluminum, chromium, cobalt, copper, iron, lead, nickel, zinc, and rare earths.
In Colombia, signs of lithium have been detected in the northwest of the territory, copper in regions such as the department of Chocó, in the Pacific, and tungsten in the department of Caldas, in the center of the country, recently found by a company that was looking for gold, silver, and copper in the area, according to the newspaper 'Portafolio'.
Alliance in civil nuclear energy
Regarding the memorandum on civil nuclear cooperation, the U.S. Department of State has indicated that it is based on the obligations of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and on the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency, in a context in which, it has emphasized, "Colombia is considering the use of nuclear energy to promote energy security."
The document outlines the "joint intention" to collaborate in strengthening regulatory capacities, creating alliances with the industry, and in scientific and academic exchanges, with the aim of supporting the development of civil nuclear infrastructure and the training of specialized personnel in the Latin American country.
The agreement also includes the exploration of U.S. nuclear technologies --including advanced and small modular reactors--, as well as fuel, equipment, and services, and the promotion of energy and non-energy applications, among them research reactors, radioisotopes --unstable forms of an element that emit radiation to transform into a more stable form--, nuclear medicine, agricultural uses, and waste management.
The United States already maintains bilateral nuclear cooperation agreements for exclusively peaceful purposes, in accordance with Article 123 of its Atomic Energy Act, with other states in the region such as Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Paraguay.
Political reactions and internal debate in Colombia
In the framework of the meeting held this Tuesday in Barranquilla, the capital of the department of Atlántico, between Rubio and Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella, the president has assured that this high-level meeting "ratifies with facts and absolute determination" that the "alliance" between Washington and Bogotá "is stronger than ever."
"We are advancing in a joint agenda to strengthen regional security, confront narcoterrorism head-on, comply and collaborate on border issues, and open new opportunities for investment, development, and prosperity for our peoples," stated the far-right leader in a message on social media in which he asserted that his country "resumes its international leadership with seriousness, character, and a results-oriented diplomacy, not one of speeches."
The visit of Rubio has provoked immediate criticism from the opposition. Senator Iván Cepeda, leftist former presidential candidate for the then-ruling Pacto Histórico, has shared a video on social media in which he claims that the trip has "all the characteristics of being an act of surrender of strategic aspects" of national "sovereignty."
"The announcement that agreements will be signed during this visit that compromise the mineral and energy wealth of the country, that national security issues will be addressed, as well as other fundamental topics for the future of the Nation, compels me to publicly express my most emphatic rejection of the commitments that Mr. De la Espriella is delivering to the domain of a foreign power without consultation," he stated, recalling that "any international agreement or treaty" signed by the central Executive "must be approved by Congress and the Constitutional Court."
In contrast, the senator and director of the right-wing party Movimiento Salvación Nacional, Enrique Gómez, who presents himself on social media as "the senator of the Tiger" --a nickname with which De la Espriella has identified since the beginning of his presidential campaign--, has positively assessed the day and said he trusts that it is "a decisive advance that will have very positive effects in regaining control of the territory and bringing tranquility and security to the citizens."
"The international scene had become a disgrace, not only because of the president's conduct but also because of his policy decisions, especially on issues of criminal policy, the fight against international terrorism, and, obviously, support for the dictatorships of the continent," Gómez indicated to the media, referring to Abelardo de la Espriella's predecessor in the Casa de Nariño, Gustavo Petro.