Leftist leader Gustavo Petro said he would sign a “letter of intent” to join the pact when he meets his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping face-to-face in the coming days.
For more than a decade it has provided investment for infrastructure and other large-scale projects around the world, offering Beijing political and economic leverage in return.
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.
On January 26, Petro denied entry to two US military planes carrying hundreds of deported Colombians.
Petro has since spoken about the need to steer Colombia's trade towards China, but Tuesday's announcement is the first major move in that direction.
Petro indicated that the letter of intent would not be binding: “Future governments will decide if this intention becomes a reality.”
It comes just months after Panama announced its withdrawal from the initiative, after fierce US pressure.
“Does Colombia want to do this right now? In exchange for what?” asked Bruce Mac Master, president of the National Association of Colombian Businesspeople.
The United States is Colombia's largest trading partner, but imports from China recently outpaced those from the United States.
The date of Petro's visit to China has not yet been announced officially.
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