Colombia has started to receive international aid and rescuers after initially refusing some offers in the crucial hours following Monday’s devastating earthquake. The delay is considered the first controversy of the country’s new government, led by conservative President Abelardo de la Espriella, who took office on Friday.

International Response

Leaders across the Americas had offered support right after the 7.4 magnitude quake struck this week. However, Colombia either turned some of them down or limited how they would help. Political scientist Sandra Borda argued that the difficulties in aid management are related to the tense political transition between the current and previous administrations, which lacked a formal handover.

The new head of disaster management also said Wednesday that the government has requested rescue teams from only four countries – the US, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Israel – because, in Colombia’s view, their rescue teams have the international and national certifications required for the job. Foreign Minister Omar Bula insisted that the country has “not excluded absolutely any country in terms of the offers that have been made to us,” adding, “We work with countries without any ideological or political consideration.”

Aid Efforts

Mexico, which had prepared tons of supplies and a contingent of 255 military personnel, confirmed that it had not received a request from Colombia and that the deployment depended on it. Meanwhile, Chinese ambassador to Colombia Zhu Jingyang “urgently” asked Colombia to establish an official channel to coordinate international assistance.

The Colombian Foreign Ministry later said it was preparing a list of “specific needs” to request international aid and that it had asked the United Nations Development Programme to provide support. The US confirmed Wednesday that it had mobilized search and rescue teams from Virginia and California to Colombia after receiving a request from its government.

Original reporting: KEYT (Ventura/Santa Barbara) — read the source article.