UNITED STATES MISSION TO THE UNITED NATIONS
OFFICE OF PRESS AND PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 20, 2019
United States Ambassador to the United Nations (USUN) Kelly Craft traveled to Bogota and Cucuta, Colombia, November 16-20.
Ambassador Craft reaffirmed our strong bilateral partnership with Colombia and expressed the United States’ deep appreciation for President Duque’s leadership in finding a peaceful resolution to the Maduro-made political, economic, and humanitarian crisis affecting Venezuela and the entire region. While in Bogota, Ambassador Craft met with Venezuelan workers, as well as with Colombian businesses providing employment and social support to displaced Venezuelans. She also discussed the UN and Colombian government responses to the Venezuela crisis during a dinner with the Colombian permanent representative to the United Nations and representatives of U.S. businesses in Colombia supporting response efforts.
In Cucuta, Ambassador Craft visited facilities that provide critical relief services to vulnerable Venezuelans. She listened to the stories of Venezuelans forced to flee their country and learned about their struggle to rebuild their lives and their desire to return to a once again prosperous and free Venezuela. While visiting a U.S.-funded community kitchen, a mobile classroom built by UNHCR and supported by the United States, and a Colombian hospital and migration attention center, Ambassador Craft expressed solidarity with the Venezuelan people in their struggle for democracy. She thanked the Colombian people for hosting more than 1.5 million displaced Venezuelans.
The United States has provided nearly $252 million in development/economic and humanitarian assistance to Colombia since FY 2017 to support the response to the Venezuela humanitarian crisis.
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