The US President along with President Gustavo Petro have intensified the volume of their exchange, further raising tensions between the two countries following US forces targeted Venezuela with the aim of deposing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from his position.
"He runs narcotics facilities and processing labs and that won't last much longer," Trump remarked.
Rising Threats and Accusations
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, the American leader suggested similar use of force towards the South American nation, stating the country is “very sick too” and governed by an unwell individual involved in producing cocaine and distributing it to America."
While Colombia is the leading source of the narcotic, there is no evidence implicating Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is personally tied to the illicit industry.
A Frayed Alliance
The country was historically a key ally of the US in the struggle against narcotics trade and received wide political approval from American politicians, however, the relationship have soured significantly after Trump was elected.
Colombia’s illicit drug economy is predominantly run by guerrilla factions like the Golf Clan, another leftist insurgency and renegade units of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), a large contingent of whom demobilised following a 2016 peace deal.
Petro's Strong Answer
In response to a query whether armed intervention like that in Venezuela was being considered regarding Colombia, Trump said: "That seems like a good idea from my perspective."
Petro, an ex-guerrilla fighter who demobilised in the 1990s, categorically refuted Trump's claims. "I am not illegitimate and certainly not a narco," he affirmed.
"The US president speaks without information. Cease defaming me," he posted in a post.
"If they [the US] bomb peasants, they will transform into numerous insurgents across the countryside. If they capture the president, which many of the country admires and supports, they will release the fierce spirit of the nation," Petro warned.
From Guerrilla to Leader
He passed part of his youth participating with the radical M-19 insurgent movement although reports indicate that he never took part in armed clashes. Upon leaving the group, he participated in drafting a new constitution in 1991 subsequently becoming an influential politician. He was mayor of the Colombian capital before being elected the presidency.
"I made a vow to abstain from using a weapon again ... but for the homeland I shall resume weapons once more," he vowed.
Increased Security and Cross-Political Opposition
Colombia's defense chief reported that the national leader's personal security was strengthened.
A segment of Colombia’s conservative opposition have allied themselves with Trump's stance, yet figures spanning the ideological divide have denounced the possibility of an invasion against their nation.
Bilateral and Economic Pressure
The US cancelled Petro’s visa following he called on US troops to ignore unlawful commands. In October, it placed economic restrictions targeting Petro, the first lady and several key allies.
At the same time while America bolstered its troop levels in the Caribbean and striking vessels thought to carry drugs against Venezuela’s Maduro, US forces also carried out operations on maritime targets in the eastern Pacific region near Colombia.
