President Trump along with President Gustavo Petro have intensified the rhetoric of their war of words, heightening tensions bilaterally following US forces targeted Venezuela to remove Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He runs drug factories and production sites and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump added.
Escalating Threats coupled with Accusations
Addressing the press over the weekend, Trump threatened analogous use of force against Bogotá, claiming the nation is “very sick too” and led by a sick man who enjoys creating the drug and selling it to the United States."
Although Colombia remains the leading producer of cocaine, there is no evidence implicating Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is personally involved in the business.
A Deteriorating Alliance
The country has long been a staunch collaborator of the US in the fight against drug trafficking and received cross-party backing from American politicians, but relations have worsened significantly following Trump came to office.
Its narcotics trade is mainly overseen by guerrilla factions such as the Golf Clan, another leftist insurgency and breakaway groups of the demobilized Farc, most of its former fighters disbanded subsequent to a 2016 peace deal.
The President's Defiant Answer
When asked if armed intervention similar to Venezuela was on the cards against his country, Trump replied: "I like the sound of that from my perspective."
President Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who left armed struggle in the last century, rejected the accusations. "I am no illegitimate and I am not involved in narcotics," he stated.
"He comments uninformed. End the false accusations," he expressed online.
"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will become numerous insurgents across the countryside. And should they arrest me, which a large part of Colombians holds in high esteem, they will provoke the ‘jaguar’ of the populace," the president cautioned.
From Fighter to Statesman
Petro spent a period in his early life belonging of the leftist M-19 armed organization but is not believed to have ever participated in combat. After demobilizing, he was involved in drafting the constitutional rewrite in 1991 and later became a prominent senator. He held the office of mayor of the Colombian capital before being elected president.
"I swore to abstain from using arms again ... but in defense of my country I will take up arms again," he vowed.
Heightened Measures and Widespread Opposition
The Colombian defence minister reported that Petro's protection team was strengthened.
A segment of Colombia’s political right have expressed support with Trump's stance, yet figures from across Colombian politics have condemned the threats of an invasion against their nation.
Diplomatic and Economic Sanctions
Washington withdrew Petro’s visa after he urged US troops to disobey orders that violate law. Months later, authorities imposed economic restrictions targeting Petro, his wife and several key allies.
Concurrently as the US increased its military presence near Venezuela and striking vessels thought to carry drugs to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, US forces have also conducted attacks on boats in the eastern Pacific region off the Colombian coast.
