WASHINGTON (VINnews) — The Trump administration blocked plans for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to meet privately with Colombian President Gustavo Petro during the Colombian leader’s visit to New York this week, according to a report by the New York Post.

The meeting, which reportedly was intended to focus on democracy in the Americas, was canceled after U.S. officials raised objections to the engagement, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources.

According to the report, State Department officials viewed the proposed meeting as inconsistent with restrictions placed on Petro’s U.S. visa following comments in which he urged American troops to disobey President Donald Trump.

“A visa is a privilege, not a right,” a State Department official told The Washington Post, according to the New York Post report.

Petro, a left-wing leader and frequent critic of the Trump administration, was in New York for United Nations-related events. The New York Post reported that Colombian officials later informed Mamdani’s office that Petro’s shortened itinerary would no longer allow for a meeting.

Neither the White House nor New York City Hall immediately commented on the report.