Donald Trump and President Gustavo Petro have intensified the tone of their exchange, heightening tensions bilaterally following US forces struck Venezuela to remove President Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He operates cocaine mills and cocaine factories and that won't last much longer," Trump remarked.
Growing Tensions coupled with Claims
Addressing journalists over the weekend, Trump suggested comparable military action towards the South American nation, stating Colombia is also "very ill" and led by an unwell individual who likes making cocaine and trafficking it to America."
While Colombia stands as the leading cocaine-producing country, no proof exists implicating Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is personally involved in the illicit industry.
A Deteriorating Alliance
The country has long been a staunch collaborator of the US in the fight against narcotics trade and enjoyed wide political approval from American politicians, however, the relationship have soured significantly following Trump was elected.
Colombia’s illicit drug economy is largely controlled by criminal organizations such as the Clan del Golfo, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and breakaway groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), the majority of whose members disbanded subsequent to a landmark accord.
Petro's Defiant Response
Upon being questioned whether armed intervention like that in Venezuela was being considered against his country, Trump said: "That seems like a good idea to me."
President Petro, once a member of a left-wing insurgent group who demobilised in the last century, rejected Trump's claims. "I am not an illegitimate leader nor am I a drug trafficker," he stated.
"The US president speaks without information. Stop slandering me," he wrote in a post.
"Should American forces attack rural communities, they will turn into thousands of guerrillas across the countryside. If they capture me, which a large part of the country holds in high esteem, they will provoke the ‘jaguar’ of the nation," Petro warned.
From Guerrilla to President
He passed part of his youth participating with the radical M-19 guerrilla group but is not believed to have ever took part in armed clashes. After demobilizing, he took part in writing a new constitution in 1991 subsequently becoming an influential politician. He held the office of mayor of Bogotá before winning president.
"I made a vow to never again hold a gun ... but for the homeland I shall resume the fight," he said.
Reinforced Protection and Cross-Political Rejection
Minister Pedro Sánchez stated that the president’s personal security had been reinforced.
A segment of Colombia’s conservative opposition have sided with Trump's stance, yet figures from all sides of the political spectrum have rejected the possibility of American military action against their nation.
Bilateral and Financial Strains
American authorities revoked his travel authorization following he urged US military personnel to refuse any illegal orders. Months later, authorities imposed asset freezes against the president, his spouse and several associates.
At the same time the US was building up its troop levels in the Caribbean and targeting vessels thought to carry drugs to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, US forces also carried out strikes against vessels in Pacific waters off the Colombian coast.
