Colombia says taking step to join China's Belt and Road

Colombia's leftist president on Tuesday said he intends to sign an accord to join China's Belt and Road Initiative during an upcoming visit to China, a move sure to damage already frayed relations with Washington.

Gustavo Petro said he would sign a "letter of intent" to join the pact -- a tool to substantially build China's clout overseas -- when he meets his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping face-to-face in the coming days.

The date of the visit has not yet been announced officially. Colombia has been one of the United States' closest and most steadfast trade and security partners in Latin America.

But the arrival of Colombia's first leftist president and the tariff-pocked second term of US President Donald Trump have put the relationship on ice.

The two leaders have sparred openly on social media over deportations and traded tit-for-tat tariff threats.

Petro has long spoken about steering Colombia's trade towards China, but Tuesday's announcement is the first sign of a concrete move in that direction.

Chinese officials in Bogota have been pressing Petro's government to join the pact before he leaves office next year.