Traditionally allies, the two countries are experiencing a moment of tension, after the American president called the Colombian a ‘drug trafficking leader’
The president of , , and the main diplomatic representative of the country agreed to “improve” the fight against drug trafficking, after tension with, the South American country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported this Tuesday (21).
Traditionally allies, the two countries are experiencing a moment of tension, after the American president called Petro a “drug trafficking leader” on Sunday and announced the end of economic support for Colombia due to high drug production.
Awaiting the tariffs announced by Trump, the Colombian president met on Monday night with John McNamara, head of business at the United States embassy, “with the aim of resolving the current impasse in bilateral relations”, according to a statement from the Colombian Foreign Ministry.
At the meeting, which was attended by the Colombian ambassador in Washington, “senior officials reaffirmed the commitment of both parties to improving strategies to combat drug trafficking.” “It is desirable that these efforts continue to be carried out in a coordinated manner with the United States,” stated the text.
Following Trump’s accusations, Petro called him “rude and ignorant” and recalled his ambassador for consultations. Since the Republican’s return to the White House in January, the first leftist in power in Colombia has been one of his biggest critics for his policies, such as the deportation of irregular immigrants and the sending of military forces to the Caribbean to combat drug trafficking.
On Saturday, Petro held the American government responsible for the “murder” of a fisherman and denounced that American forces violated the sovereignty of national waters. Trump argued that the Colombian government should “end” narcotics plantations “immediately”, or the “United States will do it for him, and it won’t be in a nice way”.
Petro criticized in X what he called the “threat of military invasion in Colombia and Venezuela” and “personal sanctions” against him. Media outlets claim that Washington is considering economic sanctions against the Colombian president.
The head of state of the South American country also denounced an alleged coup d’état attempted by Republican senator Bernie Moreno. Chancellor Rosa Villavicencio stated that diplomat McNamara was asked to “transmit the uneasiness in the government” caused by Trump’s “statements”, in an interview with Rádio Nacional.
Colombia is the South American country that received the most financial aid from the USA, with more than 740 million dollars (R$3.10 billion) disbursed in 2023, the last year for which complete information is available from the American government. Half of these payments are intended to combat drug trafficking.
*With information from AFP
Published by Nátaly Tenório
