Colombia’s President Petro rebuffs Trump’s military threats and drug trafficking claims, calling them unacceptable interference and slander.
BOGOTÁ: Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro has rejected threats and accusations from his US counterpart Donald Trump.
Trump, speaking to reporters, suggested military intervention in Colombia was possible and accused Petro of running cocaine operations.
“He has cocaine mills and cocaine factories and is not going to be doing it very long,” Trump said without providing evidence.
When asked if action similar to the US raid in Venezuela was possible, Trump replied, “It sounds good to me.”
Petro rebuffed the claims on social media platform X, stating his “name does not appear in court records.”
“Stop slandering me, Mr. Trump,” Petro wrote.
“That’s not how you threaten a Latin American president who emerged from the armed struggle and then from the people of Colombia’s fight for Peace.”
Petro has been a harsh critic of the Trump administration’s military action in Venezuela.
He previously accused Washington of abducting Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro “without legal basis.”
In a later post, Petro added “friends do not bomb.”
Colombia’s foreign ministry labelled Trump’s threats as “unacceptable interference” and demanded “respect.”
The two nations are key military and economic allies, but relations have been strained.
Since Trump’s second term began, the leaders have regularly clashed over tariffs and migration policy.
