The President of the United States, Donald Trump, rekindled international controversy after referring to Colombia during a press conference this Thursday, October 23.
The US president stated that the country “is a center for drug trafficking” and that it has “a terrible leader there,” referring to President Gustavo Petro.
'Colombia is a hub for drug trafficking'
During the conference, Trump mentioned various Latin American countries, including Mexico, Venezuela, and Colombia, to discuss drug trafficking and regional security. He stated, “Colombia is a hub for drug trafficking, and has been for a long time. They have a terrible leader there.” (Read: Donald Trump will meet face-to-face with Xi Jinping: when will it happen?). The US president insisted that his administration “will not tolerate much longer” what he called a “cocaine production and export crisis.”
AFP
In his words: “They are producing cocaine at levels we’ve never seen before and selling it back here. They are not going to get away with it.”
The statements add to a string of recent verbal attacks against President Petro, whom Trump has accused of “being soft on the cartels” and “not cooperating with the United States on anti-drug matters.”
A new chapter in a fractured relationship
Trump's words come amid a series of diplomatic tensions between Bogotá and Washington. In previous weeks, the US government partially decertified Colombia for"lack of results in the fight against drug trafficking," and Trump himself ordered the suspension of economic aid payments for bilateral cooperation projects. The White House, for its part, backed the president's tone. Its spokesperson Karoline Leavitt declared that"there are no signs of de-escalation by Colombia's unhinged leader," a phrase that further accentuated the political distance between the two governments. (Continue reading: The federal employees' crisis due to the budget blockade in the US.) In contrast, reactions from Bogotá were immediate. Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio described the statements as “
disrespectful and unfounded
,” stressing that “the relationship with the United States is tense, but Colombia will not accept language that offends its sovereignty.”
Petro's response
President Petro immediately responded to the accusations. Through his social media, he announced that he will defend himself before the US courts for what he described as Trump’s “slander.” “I will not accept a foreign leader defaming Colombia or its President with false accusations. We will defend ourselves in court and with the truth,” he said. Petro added that the Republican leader’s attacks are part of an “internal political campaign” in the United States and reiterated that his government maintains a policy of international cooperation “based on mutual respect and sovereignty.”
