President Trump along with President Gustavo Petro have turned up the tone of their war of words, further raising tensions between the two countries following US forces targeted Venezuela to remove President Nicolás Maduro from office.
"He runs cocaine mills and processing labs and his time is running out," the US president stated.
Growing Rhetoric and Claims
Addressing the press over the weekend, Trump hinted at comparable military action against Colombia, asserting the country is “very sick too” and led by an unwell individual involved in producing cocaine and selling it to the US."
While Colombia stands as the leading cocaine-producing country, no proof exists that President Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is in any way involved in the illicit industry.
A Strained Relationship
The country was historically a key ally of the United States in the campaign against drug trafficking and benefited from wide political approval in the US capital, however, the relationship have deteriorated significantly following Trump assumed the presidency.
The nation's illicit drug economy is largely controlled by guerrilla factions including the Golf Clan, the ELN guerrilla group and dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), most of its former fighters demobilised subsequent to a landmark accord.
Petro's Defiant Answer
When asked if military intervention comparable to Venezuela was being considered for Colombia, Trump replied: "It sounds good from my perspective."
President Petro, an ex-guerrilla fighter who left armed struggle in the last century, rejected these allegations. "I am no illegitimate and certainly not a drug trafficker," he stated.
"He comments without knowledge. End the false accusations," he wrote in a post.
"If they [the US] bomb peasants, they will transform into numerous insurgents across the countryside. If they capture the nation's leader, whom a large part of Colombians admires and supports, they will release the powerful force of the people," Petro warned.
From Fighter to Leader
Petro spent some years as a young man participating in the left-wing M-19 guerrilla group although reports indicate to have ever engaged in fighting. Upon leaving the group, he participated in creating the constitutional rewrite over three decades ago and later became an influential politician. He was mayor of Bogotá before being elected president.
"I swore not to touch a weapon again ... but for Colombia I shall resume the fight," he said.
Increased Security and Widespread Opposition
Minister Pedro Sánchez stated that the national leader's security detail had received additional support.
A segment of Colombia’s conservative opposition have expressed support with Trump's stance, but voices spanning Colombian politics have denounced the notion of American military action against their nation.
Diplomatic and Economic Pressure
American authorities withdrew the president's entry visa subsequent to he called on US troops to disobey any illegal orders. In October, it placed economic restrictions against the president, the first lady and several associates.
Simultaneously the US was building up its troop levels in the Caribbean and bombing suspected drug boats to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, the US executed attacks on maritime targets in the eastern Pacific region adjacent to Colombia.
