Colombia could take ‘retaliatory measures’ if Ecuador does not desist on tariff hike

The Colombian government said they would take into consideration the application of “retaliatory measures” against Ecuador if the country does not reconsider the tariff rise it intends to charge to the entry of Colombian and Peruvian products, said Vice Minister of Commerce, Mariana Sarasti.

“If we reach that point, where we see that Ecuador is firm in that desision, Colombia will have to see what retaliatory measures takes as well,” Sarasti told the radio station Radio Blu.

“The measure took us by surprise, we tried by all means to meet with the Ecuadorian Government to avoid a measure of this kind, however, on January 5 we woke up with this news, this is beyond the regular actions of the CAN,” said the Vice Minister.

Sarasti said that Colombia would export to Ecuador around USD 900 million and imports 900 a year, so the tariff increase would affect them in a “serious” manner.

“We will try to meet and negotiate with them (Ecuador) to lift the measure, seek alternatives that are less serious for Colombian exports, we also sent a request to the CAN so they notify Ecuador to lift the measure until the due process is takes effect,” she concluded.