Donald Trump and President Gustavo Petro have intensified the tone in their verbal conflict, heightening strains between the two countries following US forces attacked Venezuela to remove President Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He has narcotics facilities and production sites and is not going to be doing it very long," the US president stated.
Rising Threats and Claims
Speaking to the press over the weekend, the US president threatened similar armed intervention against Bogotá, claiming the country is also "very ill" and “run by a sick man who likes making the drug and trafficking it to the US."
While Colombia stands as the globe's biggest producer of cocaine, authorities have found no indication linking President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is in any way involved in the illicit industry.
A Deteriorating Alliance
The country has long been a close partner of Washington in the struggle against narcotics trade and enjoyed bipartisan support from American politicians, yet ties have deteriorated significantly after Trump came to office.
Colombia’s illicit drug economy is predominantly run by illegal armed groups such as the Golf Clan, another leftist insurgency and breakaway groups of the demobilized Farc, most of its former fighters disbanded following a historic peace agreement.
Colombia's Firm Answer
When asked if a military operation like that in Venezuela was being considered against his country, Trump said: "It sounds good from my perspective."
President Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who disarmed in the last century, categorically refuted the accusations. "I am no an illegitimate leader and certainly not a drug trafficker," he stated.
"Trump speaks without information. Stop slandering me," he expressed online.
"Should American forces attack rural communities, they will transform into a multitude of fighters across the countryside. If they capture me, which a large part of the population admires and supports, they will release the ‘jaguar’ of the nation," he admonished.
From Insurgent to Statesman
He passed some years as a young man belonging of the leftist M-19 insurgent movement though it is believed to have ever participated in combat. After demobilizing, he was involved in creating a new constitution in 1991 subsequently becoming a prominent senator. He served as mayor of the Colombian capital prior to his election president.
"I made a vow not to touch a gun ... but in defense of my country I would take up arms again," he affirmed.
Heightened Measures and Widespread Opposition
Colombia's defense chief stated that the national leader's personal security had been reinforced.
Several members of Colombia’s conservative opposition have allied themselves with the US president, however, leaders spanning the ideological divide have condemned the threats of an invasion on Colombia.
Bilateral and Financial Strains
Washington revoked his travel authorization subsequent to he urged American soldiers to disobey orders that violate law. Months later, authorities imposed economic restrictions against the president, his wife and a number of key allies.
Concurrently as the US increased its troop levels in the region and bombing vessels thought to carry drugs to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, US forces also carried out strikes on boats in Pacific waters near Colombia.
