The US President along with President Gustavo Petro have turned up the tone of their war of words, increasing strains between the two countries following American military units attacked Venezuela with the aim of deposing President Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He runs cocaine mills and processing labs and is not going to be doing it very long," the US president stated.
Escalating Threats and Accusations
Speaking to journalists over the weekend, the American leader threatened similar military action towards the South American nation, asserting Colombia is also "very ill" and “run by an unwell individual involved in producing narcotics and distributing it to the United States."
While Colombia remains the leading cocaine-producing country, authorities have found no indication implicating Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is personally tied to the illicit industry.
A Deteriorating Alliance
Colombia was historically a key ally of the United States in the campaign against drug trafficking and benefited from cross-party backing from American politicians, but relations have worsened significantly following Trump assumed the presidency.
Colombia’s illicit drug economy is predominantly run by guerrilla factions like the Clan del Golfo, another leftist insurgency and breakaway groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), the majority of whose members demobilised subsequent to a historic peace agreement.
The President's Firm Rebuttal
Upon being questioned whether military intervention like that in Venezuela was being considered for Colombia, Trump replied: "That seems like a good idea to me personally."
The Colombian leader, an ex-guerrilla fighter who left armed struggle in the 1990s, firmly denied the accusations. "I am no illegitimate and certainly not a narco," he declared.
"He comments uninformed. Cease defaming me," he expressed in a post.
"If they [the US] bomb peasants, they will become a multitude of fighters across the countryside. And if they detain me, whom a significant portion of Colombians loves and respects, they will unleash the ‘jaguar’ of the nation," Petro warned.
From Insurgent to President
Petro spent some years as a young man as a member of the leftist M-19 guerrilla group although reports indicate to have ever engaged in fighting. Upon leaving the group, he took part in writing the nation's constitution in 1991 and later became a prominent senator. He held the office of mayor of the capital city before winning the nation's highest office.
"I swore to never again hold arms again ... but for Colombia I would take up the fight," he affirmed.
Increased Security along with Cross-Political Rejection
The Colombian defence minister stated that the national leader's security detail had been reinforced.
Many among Colombia’s political right have allied themselves with the US president, but voices from across Colombian politics have denounced the possibility of American military action on Colombia.
Diplomatic and Economic Strains
The US withdrew his travel authorization after he called on US troops to disobey orders that violate law. Later, in October, the US enacted economic restrictions against the president, his spouse and a number of close collaborators.
Concurrently the US was building up its troop levels in the Caribbean and targeting suspected drug boats against Venezuela’s Maduro, the US also carried out strikes against vessels off the Pacific coast near Colombia.
