The US President and his Colombian counterpart have intensified the rhetoric of their war of words, increasing tensions in their relations following American military units attacked Venezuela with the aim of deposing the leader of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro from his position.
"He has cocaine mills and cocaine factories and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump remarked.
Escalating Rhetoric coupled with Allegations
Speaking to reporters over the weekend, the US president suggested comparable armed intervention against Colombia, asserting the nation is “very sick too” and governed by a problematic figure who enjoys creating the drug and distributing it to the US."
Although Colombia is the leading producer of cocaine, there is no evidence implicating Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is directly tied to the trade.
A Frayed Partnership
Colombia for decades served as a close partner of the US in the struggle against drug trafficking and benefited from cross-party backing in Washington, yet ties have worsened markedly following Trump assumed the presidency.
The nation's narcotics trade is predominantly run by criminal organizations including one major cartel, the ELN guerrilla group and breakaway groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), the majority of whose members demobilised after a historic peace agreement.
Colombia's Defiant Rebuttal
Upon being questioned if a military operation like that in Venezuela was on the cards against his country, Trump responded: "It sounds good to me."
The Colombian leader, a former leftist guerrilla who left armed struggle in the last century, categorically refuted the accusations. "I am no illegitimate nor am I a drug trafficker," he affirmed.
"Trump speaks uninformed. End the false accusations," he wrote in a message.
"If US bombs target peasants, they will become a multitude of fighters across the countryside. And should they arrest the president, whom a large part of the population loves and respects, they will release the powerful force of the populace," he admonished.
From Fighter to President
Petro spent a period in his early life participating in the left-wing M-19 armed organization though it is believed that he never engaged in fighting. Upon leaving the group, he participated in writing a new constitution in 1991 and eventually served as a respected lawmaker. He was mayor of the capital city before winning the presidency.
"I pledged to abstain from using a weapon again ... but for the homeland I will take up the fight," he vowed.
Reinforced Protection along with Widespread Condemnation
Minister Pedro Sánchez stated that the national leader's security detail was strengthened.
A segment of Colombia’s right wing opposition have expressed support with the US president, yet figures spanning the ideological divide have condemned the threats of a US attack targeting Colombia.
Bilateral and Economic Sanctions
The US revoked his travel authorization after he called on US troops to ignore any illegal orders. Months later, it placed financial sanctions targeting Petro, his wife and a number of key allies.
Concurrently the US was building up its forces near Venezuela and targeting alleged narcotics traffickers against Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets also carried out strikes on maritime targets off the Pacific coast near Colombia.
