The tension between Peru and Colombia by the Chnería Island Continue climbing. Amid the border conflict, Daniel Quintero, former mayor of Medellín and current presidential candidate, threatened to go to war if Peru insists on what he considers an improper appropriation of the Colombian Amazon.
“Peru wants to keep the Colombian Amazon and have said that they are not going to step back. Well, and if God wants and I am elected president, I will not let them take away a single centimeter of our territory,” Quintero wrote in his X account (formerly Twitter). He added that “he will not hesitate to go to war” if Leticia is left without access to the Amazon.
Daniel Quintero, presidential candidate of the historical pact, sent a message to Peru of what will happen if he wins the presidential elections: “I will not hesitate to go to war if he insists on leaving Leticia without the Amazon.” https://t.co/if1kx8q65f pic.twitter.com/n9qleaj4sr
– Week Magazine (@Revistasemana) August 7, 2025
The statement is given in support of President Gustavo Petro, who in recent days accused the Peruvian Government of violating the Rio de Janeiro protocol – a pretended that defines the river border – allegedly installing the capital of the new district of Santa Rosa in a territory that, according to its interpretation, would correspond to Colombia.
Quintero also appealed to historical nationalism by remembering the clashes of the twentieth century: “It is not the first time that Peru tries to keep pieces of Colombia.
The former mayor also congratulated President Petro for his position in front of foreign policy: “Trump was not left, and less will be left of Peru. I don’t either.”
Quintero’s statements, says the magazine Semana, have been interpreted by analysts as an explicit use of patriotism as an electoral tool, a common strategy in presidential campaigns to generate emotional identification with voters.
Diplomatic voices of Colombia have called for prudence, remembering that Santa Rosa is a territory officially recognized as Peruvian and that the 1934 treaty does not admit unilateral reinterpretations.
Who is Daniel Quintero?
Daniel Quintero is currently not affiliated with any political party. His campaign for 2026 elections is impulsed independently by collecting signatures.
Throughout his career he has gone through several groups: he was a member of the Conservative Party, after the Green Alliance, later of the Liberal Party, and finally founded the “Independent” Citizen Movement, with which he reached the Mayor’s Office of Medellín in 2019.
Although he declares himself independent, Quintero – 45 years old – has shown closeness to President Gustavo Petro and the block of the historical pact, of which he has supported policies and speeches.
Quintero was sanctioned in 2022 by the Attorney General’s Office with six months of disqualification to exercise public office and a fine of $ 104 million (about 24 thousand dollars), for having promoted Gustavo Petro’s candidacy during the presidential elections of that year while occupying a public office.
According to the Public Ministry, Quintero incurred improper participation in politics by expressing his support for today, which violates the neutrality regime that public officials must keep.
Quintero is considered a figure close to Petrismo and usual visitor of the Casa de Nariño.
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