This past Thursday, the United States and Colombia took major diplomatic measures against each other by both recalling their top envoys from the other country. The sequential actions are a major shock to a bilateral relationship that has a history of cooperation and success. Now, with intra-American diplomacy taking a major blow, there will be several consequences and takeaways for governments around the world.

The crisis happened after a Colombian probe into a supposed plot to remove President Gustavo Petro from office. Both Colombian and American politicians have been accused of being involved. The US State Department called back its chargé d'affaires in Bogotá, John McNamara, because of "baseless and reprehensible statements from the highest levels of the Government of Colombia." President Petro quickly recalled Colombia's ambassador to Washington, Daniel García Peña.