President Trump along with Colombia's president have intensified the tone of their exchange, heightening tensions bilaterally following American military units targeted Venezuela to remove Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from office.
"He operates drug factories and processing labs and that won't last much longer," Trump remarked.
Escalating Tensions coupled with Allegations
Talking to reporters over the weekend, the US president suggested similar armed intervention towards the South American nation, claiming Colombia faces serious problems and governed by a problematic figure who likes making narcotics and trafficking it to the US."
While Colombia is the globe's biggest source of the narcotic, there is no evidence that President Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is personally tied to the business.
A Frayed Relationship
The country for decades served as a staunch collaborator of the United States in the fight against narcotics trade and enjoyed wide political approval in Washington, however, the relationship have soured markedly following Trump came to office.
Colombia’s narcotics trade is predominantly run by criminal organizations including one major cartel, the ELN guerrilla group and renegade units of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), the majority of whose members demobilised after a historic peace agreement.
Petro's Defiant Response
When asked if armed intervention comparable to Venezuela was on the cards against his country, Trump responded: "That seems like a good idea from my perspective."
Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who disarmed decades ago, rejected these allegations. "I am neither illegitimate and certainly not a drug trafficker," he affirmed.
"The US president speaks without knowledge. Stop slandering me," he wrote online.
"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will become a multitude of fighters across the countryside. And should they arrest the president, which a significant portion of the country admires and supports, they will provoke the ‘jaguar’ of the people," Petro warned.
From Guerrilla to President
Petro spent some years as a young man participating of the leftist M-19 armed organization though it is believed he did not participated in combat. After demobilizing, he participated in creating the constitutional rewrite over three decades ago and eventually served as a respected lawmaker. He served as mayor of the capital city before winning the nation's highest office.
"I pledged to never again hold arms again ... but for the homeland I shall resume arms again," he affirmed.
Heightened Measures and Cross-Political Rejection
The Colombian defence minister announced that the national leader's protection team had been reinforced.
Many among Colombia’s conservative opposition have expressed support with the US president, yet figures from across Colombian politics have rejected the notion of an invasion against their nation.
Political and Financial Strains
American authorities revoked Petro’s visa following he urged US military personnel to disobey orders that violate law. In October, it placed asset freezes on Petro, his spouse and several close collaborators.
At the same time as the US increased its troop levels near Venezuela and striking vessels thought to carry drugs to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets have also conducted attacks on maritime targets off the Pacific coast adjacent to Colombia.
