Colombia's President Says 'I Would Resort to Weapons Again' should American Forces Launches an Attack.

The US President along with President Gustavo Petro have escalated the tone in their verbal conflict, further raising tensions in their relations following American military units targeted Venezuela to remove the leader of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro from his position.

"He runs narcotics facilities and cocaine factories and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump added.

Growing Tensions coupled with Accusations

Speaking to reporters over the weekend, Trump hinted at comparable use of force against Bogotá, claiming the nation is also "very ill" and “run by a sick man involved in producing cocaine and trafficking it to the US."

Although Colombia remains the world’s largest producer of cocaine, authorities have found no indication that President Gustavo Petro, who was elected in 2022, is in any way connected to the trade.

A Frayed Relationship

This nation for decades served as a staunch collaborator of Washington in the campaign combating drug cartels and enjoyed cross-party backing from American politicians, however, the relationship have worsened significantly after Trump was elected.

The nation's narcotics trade is mainly overseen by illegal armed groups like the Golf Clan, the ELN guerrilla group and dissident factions of the demobilized Farc, a large contingent of whom demobilised subsequent to a landmark accord.

Colombia's Strong Response

When asked if armed intervention similar to Venezuela was a possibility regarding Colombia, Trump said: "That seems like a good idea from my perspective."

President Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who demobilised in the last century, rejected Trump's claims. "I am no illegitimate and I am not involved in narcotics," he declared.

"The US president speaks without knowledge. Cease defaming me," he wrote in a post.

"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will become thousands of guerrillas in the mountains. And if they detain the president, whom a significant portion of the population loves and respects, they will unleash the powerful force of the nation," Petro warned.

From Insurgent to Statesman

He passed part of his youth belonging of the leftist M-19 guerrilla group although reports indicate he did not took part in armed clashes. After demobilizing, he participated in drafting the constitutional rewrite in 1991 and later became a prominent senator. He served as mayor of Bogotá prior to his election president.

"I swore to never again hold a weapon again ... but for the homeland I shall resume weapons once more," he vowed.

Reinforced Protection along with Cross-Political Opposition

The Colombian defence minister stated that Petro's security detail was strengthened.

Several members of Colombia’s political right have sided with Trump's stance, but voices from all sides of the political spectrum have rejected the notion of an invasion against their nation.

Bilateral and Financial Pressure

American authorities revoked his travel authorization after he called on US troops to disobey any illegal orders. Later, in October, it placed financial sanctions on Petro, the first lady and various associates.

At the same time as the US increased its troop levels near Venezuela and targeting vessels thought to carry drugs to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, the US have also conducted strikes on maritime targets off the Pacific coast off the Colombian coast.