Donald Trump along with President Gustavo Petro have turned up the rhetoric in their verbal conflict, increasing strains bilaterally following US forces targeted Venezuela to remove the leader of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro from office.
"He runs narcotics facilities and production sites and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump added.
Growing Threats coupled with Claims
Speaking to the press over the weekend, the American leader suggested comparable military action against Colombia, asserting the country is “very sick too” and led by a sick man who enjoys creating cocaine and selling it to the US."
While Colombia is the globe's biggest cocaine-producing country, there is no evidence that President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is in any way connected to the trade.
A Strained Partnership
This nation has long been a staunch collaborator of the United States in the campaign against narcotics trade and received cross-party backing from American politicians, yet ties have deteriorated markedly following Trump assumed the presidency.
Its illicit drug economy is predominantly run by guerrilla factions such as the Golf Clan, another leftist insurgency and dissident factions of the former Farc guerrillas, the majority of whose members demobilised subsequent to a landmark accord.
Petro's Firm Rebuttal
When asked whether armed intervention comparable to Venezuela was a possibility regarding Colombia, Trump responded: "It sounds good to me."
President Petro, once a member of a left-wing insurgent group who left armed struggle in the last century, firmly denied the accusations. "I am no an illegitimate leader and I am not involved in narcotics," he affirmed.
"He comments uninformed. End the false accusations," he posted in a post.
"If US bombs target peasants, they will transform into numerous insurgents across the countryside. And if they detain the president, whom many of Colombians holds in high esteem, they will release the fierce spirit of the nation," he admonished.
From Insurgent to Leader
Petro spent a period in his early life as a member in the left-wing M-19 guerrilla group but is not believed he did not took part in armed clashes. Following his disarmament, he was involved in creating the constitutional rewrite in the early 90s subsequently becoming a prominent senator. He was mayor of the Colombian capital before being elected the presidency.
"I swore not to touch a weapon again ... but for Colombia I would take up the fight," he said.
Increased Security and Widespread Rejection
Colombia's defense chief reported that the president’s security detail was strengthened.
Several members of Colombia’s right wing opposition have sided with Trump's stance, yet figures spanning Colombian politics have rejected the threats of American military action targeting Colombia.
Diplomatic and Economic Sanctions
American authorities revoked his travel authorization subsequent to he urged US troops to ignore any illegal orders. In October, it placed economic restrictions against the president, his wife and several close collaborators.
Simultaneously the US was building up its military presence near Venezuela and targeting suspected drug boats to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, the US also carried out attacks on maritime targets in the eastern Pacific region adjacent to Colombia.
