The US President along with Colombia's president have escalated the volume of their war of words, increasing strains in their relations after American military units attacked Venezuela with the aim of deposing the leader of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He operates cocaine mills and cocaine factories and his time is running out," Trump added.
Rising Threats coupled with Claims
Talking to journalists on Sunday, Trump suggested analogous armed intervention against Colombia, stating the nation faces serious problems and led by an unwell individual who likes making narcotics and trafficking it to the United States."
While Colombia is the leading source of the narcotic, authorities have found no indication implicating Gustavo Petro, who was elected in 2022, is directly involved in the trade.
A Deteriorating Partnership
The country was historically a close partner of Washington in the struggle against drug trafficking and benefited from wide political approval from American politicians, yet ties have worsened dramatically following Trump came to office.
Its narcotics trade is mainly overseen by criminal organizations like the Golf Clan, the ELN guerrilla group and renegade units of the former Farc guerrillas, a large contingent of whom disbanded following a 2016 peace deal.
Petro's Strong Response
In response to a query whether a military operation like that in Venezuela was being considered regarding Colombia, Trump said: "That seems like a good idea to me personally."
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 neither an illegitimate leader nor am I a narco," he declared.
"He comments without information. Stop slandering me," he wrote online.
"Should American forces attack rural communities, they will turn into thousands of guerrillas across the countryside. And should they arrest the nation's leader, which a significant portion of the country admires and supports, they will unleash the powerful force of the populace," he admonished.
From Guerrilla to President
Petro spent a period in his early life as a member of the leftist M-19 armed organization but is not believed he did not took part in armed clashes. Following his disarmament, he took part in creating a new constitution in 1991 and later became a respected lawmaker. He held the office of mayor of Bogotá before winning the nation's highest office.
"I pledged not to touch arms again ... but for Colombia I would take up the fight," he said.
Reinforced Protection and Widespread Opposition
Colombia's defense chief announced that Petro's protection team had been reinforced.
A segment of Colombia’s right wing opposition have sided with Trump, yet figures from all sides of the political spectrum have condemned the possibility of an invasion targeting Colombia.
Bilateral and Financial Pressure
Washington revoked his travel authorization after he called on US military personnel to disobey any illegal orders. Months later, the US enacted economic restrictions on Petro, the first lady and several key allies.
Concurrently the US was building up its military presence near Venezuela and bombing alleged narcotics traffickers to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets also carried out operations on boats in the eastern Pacific region off the Colombian coast.
