President Trump and Colombia's president have turned up the tone in their verbal conflict, further raising strains between the two countries after American military units struck Venezuela to remove President Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He runs cocaine mills and processing labs and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump added.
Growing Rhetoric coupled with Claims
Addressing reporters over the weekend, Trump hinted at analogous armed intervention against Colombia, claiming the country is “very sick too” and “run by a sick man who enjoys creating the drug and selling it to the United States."
While Colombia is the world’s largest source of the narcotic, there is no evidence linking President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is directly tied to the illicit industry.
A Strained Alliance
This nation has long been a key ally of Washington in the campaign combating drug cartels and received bipartisan support from American politicians, but relations have deteriorated significantly following Trump came to office.
Colombia’s narcotics trade is largely controlled by guerrilla factions including one major cartel, another leftist insurgency and breakaway groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), the majority of whose members laid down arms subsequent to a historic peace agreement.
The President's Firm Response
When asked if a military operation like that in Venezuela was on the cards against his country, Trump replied: "It sounds good from my perspective."
President Petro, once a member of a left-wing insurgent group who demobilised in the last century, categorically refuted the accusations. "I am not an illegitimate leader and certainly not a narco," he declared.
"The US president speaks without information. End the false accusations," he wrote online.
"If US bombs target rural communities, they will turn into thousands of guerrillas in the hills. And if they detain the president, whom a significant portion of the country holds in high esteem, they will release the fierce spirit of the nation," the president cautioned.
From Insurgent to President
He passed some years as a young man belonging in the left-wing M-19 insurgent movement but is not believed that he never took part in armed clashes. Following his disarmament, he took part in creating the constitutional rewrite over three decades ago and eventually served as a prominent senator. He held the office of mayor of the Colombian capital before winning the presidency.
"I pledged to abstain from using arms again ... but in defense of my country I would take up the fight," he said.
Reinforced Protection along with Cross-Political Opposition
The Colombian defence minister reported that the national leader's security detail had received additional support.
Several members of Colombia’s political right have expressed support with the US president, but voices spanning Colombian politics have rejected the possibility of American military action on Colombia.
Political and Financial Strains
American authorities withdrew Petro’s visa following he urged American soldiers to disobey orders that violate law. In October, the US enacted asset freezes against the president, the first lady and several close collaborators.
Concurrently as the US increased its troop levels near Venezuela and bombing suspected drug boats to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets also carried out operations against vessels in the eastern Pacific region off the Colombian coast.
