The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, stated this Thursday that the United States’ decision to withdraw its aid to the country does not change “anything”, beyond “specific problems” with military resources, and accused the Colombian right in Miami (USA) of lobbying against his Government.
«What happens if they take away our help? In my opinion, nothing (…) I have never seen a single dollar of aid in Colombia’s budget,” Petro said in a press conference with international media at the Casa de Nariño, headquarters of the Government, one day after his American counterpart, Donald Trump, announced that his country has already suspended all payments and subsidies to Colombia in the midst of a new escalation of tensions due to the war on drugs.
Petro insisted that US aid “is not for the Colombian Government” but for “the NGOs managed by USAID” (the defunct United States Agency for International Development), that is, “for themselves,” he denounced.
He also questioned whether this cooperation really benefits Colombian society, considering that Washington’s anti-drug war has failed because it was based for decades on the forced eradication of coca crops, which, he said, has condemned Colombia “to violence.”
March against Trump’s threats
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, said on Wednesday that he will fight “against slander” with lawyers in the United States and reiterated his willingness to cooperate in the fight against drug trafficking, but only with countries that respect Colombia’s sovereignty.
He insisted that his Government’s anti-drug policy, which in addition to increasing cocaine seizures, promoted agrarian and rural improvements to expand the well-being of farmers and guarantee the substitution of illicit crops, in line with a comprehensive approach, focused on respect for human rights.
“I will always be against genocides and assassinations by those in power in the Caribbean,” the president wrote in X, after Trump’s new accusations without evidence. Earlier, he called on the people to march tomorrow in Bogotá against US threats.
He rejected that the Caribbean Sea is crossed by American warships and that that country has murdered a Colombian fisherman. This type of maneuver breaks international law. The White House commits extrajudicial executions and uses disproportionate force, he said.
“The people have to take to the streets and that is why on Friday I invite you at 4 o’clock to join me, because it is in company that one defends oneself against a monster like Trump,” said the president during a meeting of the Council of Ministers.
Petro also proposed three initiatives to redefine the links between Bogotá and Washington.
Trump seeks to influence elections
He assured that his United States counterpart, Donald Trump, intends to influence his country’s elections with his insults, scheduled for next year.
“The magnitude of Trump’s insult to Colombia and to myself is no longer intended to achieve an effective anti-drug strategy, but rather to affect the elections next year,” he wrote on his X account.
He added that the US president is “seeking again the triumph of the extreme right, yes, strong and probably linked to drug trafficking, but obedient to invasions.”
