Donald Trump along with his Colombian counterpart have intensified the rhetoric in their verbal conflict, further raising tensions bilaterally following US forces attacked Venezuela in an operation to oust the leader of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro from his position.
"He runs cocaine mills and production sites and that won't last much longer," the US president stated.
Escalating Threats and Allegations
Addressing journalists on Sunday, the US president threatened similar use of force against Bogotá, claiming the country is also "very ill" and led by a problematic figure involved in producing narcotics and trafficking it to the US."
Although Colombia remains the world’s largest producer of cocaine, there is no evidence that President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is personally connected to the illicit industry.
A Deteriorating Alliance
The country has long been a close partner of Washington in the struggle against drug trafficking and benefited from cross-party backing from American politicians, but relations have deteriorated dramatically since Trump assumed the presidency.
The nation's illicit drug economy is predominantly run by criminal organizations like the Golf Clan, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and breakaway groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), a large contingent of whom disbanded following a historic peace agreement.
Petro's Defiant Answer
Upon being questioned if armed intervention like that in Venezuela was a possibility regarding Colombia, Trump replied: "That seems like a good idea to me personally."
President Petro, once a member of a left-wing insurgent group who disarmed in the last century, rejected these allegations. "I am not illegitimate and certainly not involved in narcotics," he declared.
"The US president speaks uninformed. Stop slandering me," he wrote online.
"If they [the US] bomb peasants, they will become a multitude of fighters in the hills. If they capture me, which a large part of the population loves and respects, they will unleash the fierce spirit of the populace," Petro warned.
From Insurgent to Statesman
Petro spent some years as a young man as a member in the left-wing M-19 insurgent movement though it is believed that he never took part in armed clashes. After demobilizing, he was involved in creating a new constitution in 1991 and later became an influential politician. He held the office of mayor of the Colombian capital prior to his election the nation's highest office.
"I swore not to touch a gun ... but for Colombia I shall resume the fight," he vowed.
Increased Security and Widespread Opposition
The Colombian defence minister stated that the president’s security detail was strengthened.
Several members of Colombia’s right wing opposition have allied themselves with Trump, but voices spanning the political spectrum have denounced the threats of an invasion against their nation.
Political and Financial Strains
The US revoked his travel authorization following he urged US military personnel to ignore orders that violate law. Later, in October, it placed asset freezes targeting Petro, his wife and a number of associates.
Concurrently while America bolstered its troop levels in the region and bombing suspected drug boats against Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets have also conducted operations on boats off the Pacific coast near Colombia.
