Colombia–Italy relations are the current and historical relations between the Republic of

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

and the

Italian Republic Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. Both nations are members of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

History

In 1502, Italian explorer

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

(in the service for

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

) on his fourth voyage encountered the

Guna people The Guna (also spelled Kuna or Cuna) are an Indigenous people of Panama and Colombia. Guna people live in three politically autonomous '' comarcas'' or autonomous reservations in Panama, and in a few small villages in Colombia. There are also co ...

who inhabit present day Colombia and

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

. Soon afterwards, the land would be christened after Christopher Columbus. In 1819, Colombia obtained its independence from Spain. In 1847 Colombia and Italy established diplomatic relations.Relaciones diplomáticas Colombia-Italia (in Spanish)
/ref> Soon after the establishment of diplomatic relations, Italians began migrating to Colombia. Several thousands arrived to country, most in the early 20th century.La ciudadanía italiana y los descendientes de ciudadanos italianos emigrados en Colombia (in Spanish)
/ref> During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Colombia broke diplomatic relations with the

Axis powers The Axis powers, originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis and also Rome–Berlin–Tokyo Axis, was the military coalition which initiated World War II and fought against the Allies of World War II, Allies. Its principal members were Nazi Ge ...

(which includes Italy). Soon afterwards, both nations re-established diplomatic relations. Relations between both nations have remained close. In 2012, Colombia (and

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

) signed a

free trade agreement A free trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating state (polity), states. There are two types of trade agreements: Bilateralism, bilateral and Multilateralism, m ...

with the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

(which includes Italy). There have also been several high-level visits and reunions between leaders of both nations. In October 2015, Prime Minister

Matteo Renzi Matteo Renzi (; born 11 January 1975) is an Italian politician who served as prime minister of Italy from 2014 to 2016. He has been a senator for Florence since 2018. Renzi has served as the leader of Italia Viva (IV) since 2019, having bee ...

became the first Italian head-of-state to visit Colombia. In December 2016, Colombian President

Juan Manuel Santos Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...

paid a visit to Italy. During his visit, the Italian government expressed its support for the

Colombian peace process The Colombian peace process refers to the negotiations between the Government of Colombia under President Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC–EP) aimed at ending the decades-long Colombian conflict. Th ...

between the Colombian government and the

FARC The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (, FARC–EP or FARC) was a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict starting in 1964. The FARC-EP was officially founded in 1966 from peasan ...

Bilateral agreements

Both nations have signed several agreements such as an Agreement for the exchange of Diplomatic Grants (1933); Agreement for the abolition of visas in diplomatic and service passports (1962); Agreement on Cultural Cooperation (1963); Agreement for Technical and Scientific Cooperation (1971); Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation of Income (1979); Agreement on Economic, Industrial and Technical Cooperation (1987); Agreement of Cooperation in Support of the Alternative Peace and Development Process (2001) and an Agreement on Defense Cooperation (2010).

Resident diplomatic missions

* Colombia has an embassy in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and a consulate-general in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

. * Italy has an embassy in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

.Embassy of Italy in Bogotá
/ref> File:Q01 Flaminio via Luisa di Savoia palazzina Ravà (1911) PB170010.JPG, Residence of the Embassy of Colombia in Rome File:Rom 2013 004 (fcm).jpg, Consulate-General of Colombia in Rome File:Bogotá Calle 93 B con carrera 9 embajada de Italia en Bogotá.JPG, Embassy of Italy in Bogotá

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colombia-Italy

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

History

Bilateral agreements

Resident diplomatic missions

See also

References