President Trump and President Gustavo Petro have turned up the rhetoric of their exchange, increasing tensions between the two countries following US forces struck Venezuela to remove the leader of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro from his position.
"He has cocaine mills and production sites and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump remarked.
Escalating Rhetoric coupled with Accusations
Addressing reporters over the weekend, the US president threatened similar use of force against Colombia, asserting the country is also "very ill" and led by a problematic figure who enjoys creating cocaine and distributing it to the United States."
Although Colombia remains the globe's biggest cocaine-producing country, authorities have found no indication linking President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is directly connected to the illicit industry.
A Strained Alliance
The country has long been a close partner of Washington in the fight against narcotics trade and received bipartisan support from American politicians, however, the relationship have worsened dramatically following Trump came to office.
The nation's narcotics trade is mainly overseen by criminal organizations such as the Clan del Golfo, the ELN guerrilla group and breakaway groups of the demobilized Farc, a large contingent of whom demobilised after a historic peace agreement.
Colombia's Strong Response
Upon being questioned whether armed intervention like that in Venezuela was being considered against his country, Trump replied: "That seems like a good idea to me."
President Petro, an ex-guerrilla fighter who left armed struggle in the last century, categorically refuted these allegations. "I am not illegitimate nor am I a narco," he stated.
"The US president speaks uninformed. Stop slandering me," he wrote online.
"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will turn into thousands of guerrillas across the countryside. And should they arrest the president, whom a large part of the population loves and respects, they will provoke the powerful force of the people," he admonished.
From Guerrilla to Statesman
Petro spent some years as a young man belonging with the radical M-19 armed organization though it is believed to have ever engaged in fighting. After demobilizing, he participated in creating the nation's constitution in 1991 subsequently becoming an influential politician. He served as mayor of the Colombian capital before winning the presidency.
"I swore not to touch arms again ... but in defense of my country I will take up weapons once more," he said.
Heightened Measures and Widespread Condemnation
Colombia's defense chief reported that the national leader's security detail was strengthened.
Several members of Colombia’s political right have expressed support with the US president, yet figures from across the ideological divide have rejected the threats of American military action on Colombia.
Bilateral and Economic Strains
The US revoked the president's entry visa after he encouraged US troops to disobey any illegal orders. Months later, the US enacted asset freezes targeting Petro, his spouse and several key allies.
At the same time the US was building up its forces in the region and targeting suspected drug boats against Venezuela’s Maduro, the US executed strikes on maritime targets in the eastern Pacific region adjacent to Colombia.
