The US President and President Gustavo Petro have turned up the tone in their verbal conflict, further raising strains in their relations following American military units struck Venezuela with the aim of deposing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from office.
"He runs drug factories and cocaine factories and is not going to be doing it very long," the US president stated.
Rising Threats coupled with Accusations
Talking to reporters on Sunday, the American leader threatened comparable armed intervention against Bogotá, asserting the country is also "very ill" and “run by a sick man who enjoys creating cocaine and trafficking it to the US."
While Colombia is the leading producer of cocaine, no proof exists that President Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is in any way tied to the trade.
A Deteriorating Alliance
The country was historically a key ally of the United States in the fight combating drug cartels and enjoyed cross-party backing from American politicians, however, the relationship have worsened markedly since Trump came to office.
Its illicit drug economy is predominantly run by illegal armed groups such as one major cartel, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and renegade units of the demobilized Farc, the majority of whose members demobilised after a historic peace agreement.
Colombia's Strong Answer
Upon being questioned if military intervention similar to Venezuela was on the cards against his country, Trump said: "It sounds good from my perspective."
Petro, an ex-guerrilla fighter who demobilised in the last century, firmly denied Trump's claims. "I am neither an illegitimate leader and certainly not involved in narcotics," he affirmed.
"Trump speaks uninformed. Stop slandering me," he posted in a post.
"If they [the US] bomb civilians, they will transform into a multitude of fighters in the hills. And should they arrest the president, which a significant portion of the country holds in high esteem, they will release the ‘jaguar’ of the people," the president cautioned.
From Fighter to President
The president dedicated some years as a young man participating with the radical M-19 insurgent movement although reports indicate to have ever took part in armed clashes. After demobilizing, he was involved in creating the constitutional rewrite in 1991 and later became a prominent senator. He served as mayor of Bogotá before winning the presidency.
"I pledged not to touch arms again ... but in defense of my country I will take up arms again," he vowed.
Heightened Measures along with Widespread Opposition
The Colombian defence minister reported that the president’s personal security had been reinforced.
A segment of Colombia’s right wing opposition have expressed support with the US president, but voices from all sides of the political spectrum have denounced the notion of American military action on Colombia.
Diplomatic and Financial Strains
American authorities withdrew the president's entry visa following he called on US troops to ignore any illegal orders. Later, in October, the US enacted asset freezes targeting Petro, his spouse and various close collaborators.
Concurrently while America bolstered its forces near Venezuela and striking vessels thought to carry drugs to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, US forces have also conducted operations against vessels in the eastern Pacific region off the Colombian coast.
