There was no meeting between Presidents Gustavo Petro and Joe Biden. The leaders were expected to shake hands Wednesday night at the US president’s reception for this week’s General Assembly in New York.
More than 100 leaders were expected to attend the event, and it was said that this could be the first opportunity for Petro and Biden to see each other for the first time. The agenda shared by Casa de Nariño showed that dinner was ready at 7:00 at night (New York time).
(You can read: Meeting with Maduro is not on the agenda at the moment: President Petro)
Sources from Casa de Nariño confirmed that Petro arrived an hour late to the event and therefore did not meet with his US counterpart.
The delay was caused by traffic problems in the city due to convoys protecting President Biden and other leaders. There were at least 190 people with appointments at the Natural History Museum, located next to Central Park.
They explain from the presidency that the Colombian president is a 15-minute drive from the scene, but it is impossible for his caravan to reach their van. The idea was that he left after meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, which ended around 6:40pm.
It was learned that the First Lady, Verónica Alcocer, would receive her, but due to the presence of President Biden in the area, she could not pass due to traffic and blockades on the streets.
This caused them to walk to where the caravan was. They say it takes at least half an hour.
(In other news: This is how President Gustavo Petro ended his agenda in New York)
The chaos in the industry has also been caused by the fact that some consulates and diplomatic residences are located in that part of Manhattan.
The President, First Lady, Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva and Chief of Staff Laura Sarabia arrived at the museum around 8:00 pm, but Biden had left at least 20 minutes earlier. He was at the reception for a short time.
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Earlier, the President held an 8:30 am meeting with members of the Americas Council, and an hour later a meeting on Haiti was scheduled with the ad hoc advisory group. At around 10:40 am, a bilateral meeting with World Bank president David Malpass was scheduled.
(We recommend: Petro apologizes to Haiti for the assassination of the president, perpetrated by the Colombians)
He attended the ‘Latin America, USA and Spain in the Global Economy’ forum at noon. Around 16:30, he had a bilateral meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. Half an hour later, another meeting was scheduled with Roberto Vélez, director of the National Federation of Coffee Growers.
He finally got to the event he was late for with Biden.
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Source: Exame
