Regarding the questioned support of President Gustavo Petro for Nicolás Maduro, amid tensions between Caracas and Washington, former President Álvaro Uribe Vélez harshly criticized the head of state for this stance. President Gustavo Petro and Nicolás Maduro. Photo: Screenshot
Uribe, during a forum for Democratic Center candidates, asserted that the government"prefers to protect Nicolás Maduro rather than the Colombian people."
Uribe's comment came during a debate on election security and possible interference by illegal groups in the 2026 elections.
"Can you imagine what we're going to do now, when this government has deployed troops to the binational zone to protect Maduro, a government that prefers to protect Maduro, that doesn't represent the Venezuelan people? Maduro is the clear expression of a corruption that has stolen its hold on power. This government is determined to protect Maduro and not the Colombian people," Uribe said during the meeting, which was attended by Miguel Uribe Londoño, María Fernanda Cabal, Paloma Valencia, Paola Holguín, and Andrés Guerra.
Uribe added that there are serious risks for the Democratic Center in at least 700 municipalities ahead of the March elections, as well as in the first and second rounds of the presidential elections.
"We have to think about how national opinion, the Armed Forces, the justice system, international mechanisms, and technology will help us protect transparency in the elections," the former president asserted.
In this regard, Uribe asked Gabriel Vallejo, director of his party, to work with other political forces to prepare the country for"great electoral transparency."
And according to Uribe, if in the past it was armed groups, with rifles on their shoulders, who prevented citizens from voting for the Democratic Center,"can you imagine now? If they did it under governments that defended the democratic banners, now with a government that is more allied with criminals than with the legal order and the Constitution. What will happen to us?"
Gustavo Petro's controversial support for Nicolás Maduro
As the Donald Trump administration increases pressure on Nicolás Maduro's regime, President Gustavo Petro has stepped up his support for the Caracas government.
That decision by Bogotá, according to experts, could even be decisive in the resolution that the United States government will take in 15 days regarding Colombia's certification in the fight against drugs.
The Colombian president now denies the existence of the"Cartel of the Suns," which the United States claims is led by Maduro, whom they consider the world's largest drug trafficker and whose capture they are offering a $50 million reward for.
"Neither Colombia, nor the Venezuelan opposition in Venezuela, nor any self-respecting Latin American should solicit or rejoice in a foreign invasion of our soil. The problems of Latin Americans and the Caribbean are solved by Latin Americans and the Caribbean," Petro recently said regarding the US military deployment in Caribbean waters.
MATEO GARCÍA
Deputy Editor of Politics
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