President Trump and President Gustavo Petro have turned up the volume of their war of words, further raising tensions between the two countries after American military units struck Venezuela to remove President Nicolás Maduro from office.
"He has drug factories and processing labs and his time is running out," Trump remarked.
Escalating Threats coupled with Accusations
Talking to reporters over the weekend, Trump suggested similar military action against Colombia, stating the country faces serious problems and governed by a problematic figure involved in producing cocaine and trafficking it to the United States."
While Colombia is the world’s largest producer of cocaine, no proof exists that President Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is directly tied to the business.
A Deteriorating Alliance
Colombia has long been a close partner of Washington in the campaign against narcotics trade and received bipartisan support in the US capital, yet ties have deteriorated markedly since Trump assumed the presidency.
The nation's drug trade is mainly overseen by guerrilla factions such as the Golf Clan, the ELN guerrilla group and breakaway groups of the former Farc guerrillas, a large contingent of whom demobilised after a 2016 peace deal.
Petro's Firm Response
When asked whether armed intervention like that in Venezuela was a possibility regarding Colombia, Trump responded: "It sounds good from my perspective."
President Petro, an ex-guerrilla fighter who left armed struggle in the last century, categorically refuted the accusations. "I am no illegitimate and certainly not a drug trafficker," he stated.
"The US president speaks uninformed. Stop slandering me," he expressed online.
"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will turn into a multitude of fighters across the countryside. If they capture the nation's leader, which a large part of the population holds in high esteem, they will provoke the fierce spirit of the populace," the president cautioned.
From Guerrilla to Statesman
The president dedicated some years as a young man participating in the left-wing M-19 armed organization although reports indicate that he never took part in armed clashes. Upon leaving the group, he participated in writing the constitutional rewrite in the early 90s and eventually served as a prominent senator. He held the office of mayor of Bogotá prior to his election president.
"I made a vow not to touch arms again ... but in defense of my country I will take up arms again," he said.
Heightened Measures along with Cross-Political Condemnation
Minister Pedro Sánchez reported that Petro's personal security was strengthened.
Several members of Colombia’s right wing opposition have expressed support with Trump, but voices spanning the political spectrum have denounced the threats of an invasion against their nation.
Bilateral and Economic Strains
Washington cancelled Petro’s visa following he called on US troops to refuse orders that violate law. Later, in October, it placed financial sanctions against the president, the first lady and various close collaborators.
At the same time as the US increased its troop levels in the Caribbean and bombing alleged narcotics traffickers to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, the US executed attacks on maritime targets off the Pacific coast off the Colombian coast.
