The US President along with President Gustavo Petro have intensified the tone in their verbal conflict, further raising tensions bilaterally following American military units attacked Venezuela to remove Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He has cocaine mills and production sites and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump remarked.
Rising Threats coupled with Claims
Speaking to journalists on Sunday, the American leader hinted at analogous armed intervention against Bogotá, claiming the country faces serious problems and governed by an unwell individual who likes making the drug and distributing it to the United States."
While Colombia stands as the leading cocaine-producing country, no proof exists that President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is directly involved in the trade.
A Deteriorating Relationship
Colombia has long been a close partner of the United States in the fight combating drug cartels and received bipartisan support from American politicians, however, the relationship have soured dramatically since Trump was elected.
The nation's drug trade is mainly overseen by criminal organizations like the Golf Clan, another leftist insurgency and renegade units of the former Farc guerrillas, most of its former fighters demobilised subsequent to a landmark accord.
The President's Defiant Rebuttal
In response to a query if armed intervention similar to Venezuela was on the cards for Colombia, Trump responded: "It sounds good to me personally."
Petro, once a member of a left-wing insurgent group who disarmed in the 1990s, rejected Trump's claims. "I am not an illegitimate leader and I am not a narco," he declared.
"He comments uninformed. Cease defaming me," he posted in a message.
"Should American forces attack peasants, they will transform into thousands of guerrillas in the mountains. And should they arrest the nation's leader, which a significant portion of the country loves and respects, they will unleash the fierce spirit of the people," he admonished.
From Fighter to Leader
He passed some years as a young man participating in the left-wing M-19 insurgent movement though it is believed to have ever participated in combat. Upon leaving the group, he participated in drafting the constitutional rewrite over three decades ago and later became a respected lawmaker. He was mayor of the Colombian capital before being elected the nation's highest office.
"I pledged to never again hold a gun ... but in defense of my country I would take up the fight," he said.
Heightened Measures and Cross-Political Opposition
Colombia's defense chief reported that the national leader's personal security had received additional support.
A segment of Colombia’s political right have sided with the US president, however, leaders from all sides of Colombian politics have condemned the threats of a US attack targeting Colombia.
Bilateral and Economic Pressure
The US cancelled his travel authorization following he encouraged American soldiers to refuse any illegal orders. In October, authorities imposed economic restrictions targeting Petro, his spouse and several close collaborators.
Concurrently the US was building up its troop levels near Venezuela and striking alleged narcotics traffickers to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets have also conducted strikes on boats in the eastern Pacific region near Colombia.
