President Trump and Colombia's president have intensified the volume of their exchange, further raising strains in their relations after US forces targeted Venezuela in an operation to oust Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from his position.
"He has narcotics facilities and processing labs and that won't last much longer," Trump added.
Growing Rhetoric coupled with Claims
Addressing journalists over the weekend, Trump threatened analogous armed intervention against Colombia, stating Colombia is “very sick too” and “run by a problematic figure involved in producing the drug and trafficking it to the US."
Although Colombia is the world’s largest producer of cocaine, no proof exists implicating Gustavo Petro, who was elected in 2022, is personally connected to the business.
A Frayed Partnership
The country has long been a close partner of Washington in the campaign combating drug cartels and received bipartisan support in the US capital, but relations have soured significantly following Trump came to office.
Colombia’s drug trade is mainly overseen by criminal organizations like one major cartel, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and renegade units of the former Farc guerrillas, most of its former fighters laid down arms after a 2016 peace deal.
The President's Defiant Answer
Upon being questioned whether military intervention comparable to Venezuela was on the cards regarding Colombia, Trump said: "I like the sound of that to me."
President Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who demobilised in the 1990s, categorically refuted the accusations. "I am not an illegitimate leader and I am not a narco," he affirmed.
"The US president speaks uninformed. End the false accusations," he wrote online.
"Should American forces attack peasants, they will transform into a multitude of fighters in the mountains. And should they arrest the president, whom a significant portion of Colombians holds in high esteem, they will release the powerful force of the populace," the president cautioned.
From Insurgent to Statesman
He passed part of his youth as a member of the leftist M-19 guerrilla group though it is believed that he never participated in combat. After demobilizing, he was involved in drafting the constitutional rewrite in 1991 and eventually served as a prominent senator. He held the office of mayor of Bogotá prior to his election the nation's highest office.
"I pledged to never again hold a weapon again ... but in defense of my country I will take up weapons once more," he affirmed.
Reinforced Protection and Widespread Rejection
Minister Pedro Sánchez announced that Petro's protection team was strengthened.
Several members of Colombia’s right wing opposition have allied themselves with the US president, however, leaders from across the political spectrum have rejected the notion of an invasion targeting Colombia.
Bilateral and Economic Pressure
American authorities withdrew the president's entry visa subsequent to he called on US troops to refuse any illegal orders. In October, the US enacted asset freezes on Petro, the first lady and several key allies.
Simultaneously the US was building up its troop levels near Venezuela and targeting alleged narcotics traffickers to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets have also conducted attacks on maritime targets off the Pacific coast adjacent to Colombia.
