The 2024 Colombia–Israel diplomatic crisis: lessons from the tech sector

The rupture of diplomatic relations between Colombia and Israel during the Gaza war exposed the political limits of a form of engagement that had become increasingly central to Israel’s relationship with Latin America: technology-centred cooperation. Over the past three decades, Colombia emerged as one of Israel’s most important partners in the region, with technological collaboration becoming a prominent channel of bilateral engagement. This article offers an introductory exploration of a paradox revealed by the 2024 crisis: why did dense networks of technological cooperation fail to generate diplomatic resilience? Drawing on bilateral agreements, policy documents, public statements, innovation programmes, and firm-level initiatives, it argues that technological cooperation operated through market education: a process through which firms and public institutions helped construct the socio-political conditions necessary for technological market formation. These practices brought public and governmental institutions into closer alignment with the needs of the technology sector, but they did not necessarily embed technological cooperation within the political objectives of the bilateral relationship.