The US President and President Gustavo Petro have escalated the rhetoric in their verbal conflict, increasing strains bilaterally following US forces struck Venezuela to remove President Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He has cocaine mills and production sites and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump remarked.
Escalating Threats and Allegations
Addressing the press on Sunday, the US president threatened similar military action towards the South American nation, asserting Colombia is also "very ill" and “run by a problematic figure who likes making narcotics and trafficking it to the US."
Although Colombia remains the leading source of the narcotic, there is no evidence linking President Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is directly connected to the business.
A Deteriorating Partnership
Colombia was historically a key ally of Washington in the struggle combating drug cartels and enjoyed wide political approval from American politicians, however, the relationship have deteriorated markedly following Trump was elected.
Colombia’s narcotics trade is largely controlled by illegal armed groups including one major cartel, another leftist insurgency and renegade units of the former Farc guerrillas, a large contingent of whom disbanded after a 2016 peace deal.
The President's Defiant Answer
Upon being questioned if military intervention similar to Venezuela was being considered for Colombia, Trump replied: "I like the sound of that from my perspective."
Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who disarmed in the 1990s, firmly denied the accusations. "I am neither an illegitimate leader and certainly not a drug trafficker," he affirmed.
"Trump speaks without knowledge. Cease defaming me," he wrote in a post.
"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will transform into a multitude of fighters across the countryside. And if they detain the nation's leader, which a significant portion of the population admires and supports, they will release the ‘jaguar’ of the nation," he admonished.
From Fighter to Leader
Petro spent part of his youth participating of the leftist M-19 guerrilla group but is not believed he did not engaged in fighting. Upon leaving the group, he participated in writing the nation's constitution in the early 90s subsequently becoming a prominent senator. He served as mayor of the capital city before being elected the nation's highest office.
"I swore to never again hold a weapon again ... but for the homeland I shall resume arms again," he vowed.
Heightened Measures along with Broad Opposition
Colombia's defense chief announced that the national leader's protection team had been reinforced.
Several members of Colombia’s right wing opposition have allied themselves with Trump's stance, but voices from all sides of the ideological divide have condemned the threats of a US attack against their nation.
Political and Financial Sanctions
Washington revoked his travel authorization after he called on US military personnel to refuse any illegal orders. In October, authorities imposed economic restrictions on Petro, his wife and several close collaborators.
At the same time the US was building up its forces in the Caribbean and bombing vessels thought to carry drugs against Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets also carried out strikes against vessels in the eastern Pacific region adjacent to Colombia.
