Colombia has backed down from a looming trade war with the United States hours after US President Donald Trump threatened Bogota with tariffs and visa restrictions for turning away US military aircraft carrying deported migrants.

The climbdown late on Sunday came after Colombian President Gustavo Petro had announced retaliatory tariffs on US imports and insisted he would not accept migrants who were not treated with “dignity and respect”.

Colombian Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo said officials had “overcome the impasse” and would accept citizens deported from the US.

A White House statement said Colombia had agreed to all of Trump’s terms, including “unrestricted acceptance of all illegal aliens from Colombia returned from the United States, including on US military aircraft, without limitation or delay”.

At the same time White House says that US will not go ahead with tariffs on Colombia, after Bogota agreed to accept deported migrants without restrictions .