President Trump along with Colombia's president have escalated the volume of their exchange, further raising tensions in their relations after American military units attacked Venezuela with the aim of deposing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from his position.
"He runs narcotics facilities and production sites and that won't last much longer," the US president stated.
Growing Tensions coupled with Claims
Speaking to journalists on Sunday, the American leader threatened similar use of force against Colombia, asserting the nation faces serious problems and led by a problematic figure involved in producing narcotics and distributing it to the United States."
Although Colombia stands as the globe's biggest producer of cocaine, there is no evidence that President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is personally tied to the illicit industry.
A Frayed Alliance
The country for decades served as a staunch collaborator of the US in the campaign against narcotics trade and benefited from bipartisan support in the US capital, yet ties have soured markedly since Trump came to office.
Colombia’s narcotics trade is predominantly run by guerrilla factions like the Golf Clan, another leftist insurgency and dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), most of its former fighters disbanded after a 2016 peace deal.
The President's Defiant Rebuttal
Upon being questioned if armed intervention like that in Venezuela was a possibility for Colombia, Trump said: "That seems like a good idea from my perspective."
President Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who left armed struggle in the 1990s, categorically refuted these allegations. "I am not illegitimate and I am not a narco," he affirmed.
"The US president speaks uninformed. Cease defaming me," he posted online.
"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will transform into a multitude of fighters across the countryside. And should they arrest me, which a large part of the country holds in high esteem, they will unleash the powerful force of the nation," he admonished.
From Fighter to President
He passed some years as a young man participating with the radical M-19 insurgent movement although reports indicate he did not participated in combat. Following his disarmament, he took part in creating the constitutional rewrite in the early 90s and later became a prominent senator. He held the office of mayor of the capital city prior to his election president.
"I pledged to never again hold a gun ... but in defense of my country I would take up weapons once more," he vowed.
Reinforced Protection along with Broad Condemnation
The Colombian defence minister stated that Petro's security detail had received additional support.
Many among Colombia’s political right have expressed support with Trump, but voices from across Colombian politics have rejected the notion of an invasion on Colombia.
Bilateral and Financial Strains
Washington withdrew Petro’s visa after he urged US military personnel to refuse any illegal orders. Months later, it placed economic restrictions against the president, the first lady and various key allies.
Simultaneously as the US increased its troop levels in the region and targeting vessels thought to carry drugs to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets also carried out operations on boats in the eastern Pacific region off the Colombian coast.
