The US President along with President Gustavo Petro have turned up the rhetoric of their war of words, heightening tensions bilaterally after US forces targeted Venezuela with the aim of deposing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from office.
"He has drug factories and production sites and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump added.
Growing Tensions coupled with Allegations
Speaking to journalists on Sunday, the US president threatened comparable military action against Bogotá, asserting the nation faces serious problems and led by a problematic figure who enjoys creating cocaine and selling it to the US."
Although Colombia is the globe's biggest producer of cocaine, no proof exists that President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is directly connected to the illicit industry.
A Strained Partnership
The country for decades served as a key ally of Washington in the struggle against narcotics trade and benefited from cross-party backing in the US capital, but relations have soured dramatically since Trump was elected.
Colombia’s narcotics trade is predominantly run by illegal armed groups including the Golf Clan, another leftist insurgency and breakaway groups of the former Farc guerrillas, the majority of whose members disbanded after a historic peace agreement.
Colombia's Defiant Rebuttal
In response to a query if military intervention comparable to Venezuela was a possibility regarding Colombia, Trump responded: "It sounds good to me personally."
The Colombian leader, an ex-guerrilla fighter who disarmed in the last century, categorically refuted the accusations. "I am no illegitimate nor am I a drug trafficker," he affirmed.
"The US president speaks uninformed. Cease defaming me," he expressed online.
"If they [the US] bomb peasants, they will transform into a multitude of fighters in the mountains. If they capture me, whom many of Colombians admires and supports, they will unleash the powerful force of the populace," Petro warned.
From Fighter to Leader
Petro spent some years as a young man as a member in the left-wing M-19 armed organization but is not believed he did not took part in armed clashes. Following his disarmament, he took part in drafting the nation's constitution over three decades ago and later became a respected lawmaker. He served as mayor of Bogotá prior to his election the nation's highest office.
"I swore to abstain from using arms again ... but in defense of my country I would take up the fight," he affirmed.
Reinforced Protection and Cross-Political Opposition
The Colombian defence minister reported that the national leader's security detail was strengthened.
A segment of Colombia’s conservative opposition have allied themselves with Trump, but voices from all sides of the ideological divide have rejected the possibility of a US attack against their nation.
Political and Economic Sanctions
American authorities cancelled Petro’s visa after he urged US troops to disobey orders that violate law. Months later, authorities imposed financial sanctions targeting Petro, his spouse and several associates.
At the same time the US was building up its troop levels in the region and striking vessels thought to carry drugs against Venezuela’s Maduro, US forces also carried out attacks against vessels in the eastern Pacific region adjacent to Colombia.
