The president donald trump confirmed that he had a telephone conversation of more than an hour with his Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, in which they addressed drug trafficking and other disagreements, and announced an invitation to the South American president to meet at the White House soon.
The Republican noted that “it was a great honor to speak with the president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, who called to explain the drug situation and other disagreements we have had” and added that he hopes to meet him “in the near future,” this less than a week after the US invasion of Venezuela that ended with the capture of the president. Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Colombian Foreign Minister coordinate the details of the meeting, according to Reuters.
A “drug trafficking leader,” according to Trump
The call occurred almost simultaneously with the first direct communication between both leaders since Trump returned to the presidency and, after weeks of tensions, in which the American head of state had accused Petro of being involved in drug trafficking and mentioned the possibility of military actions, words that generated criticism in Bogotá.
Last October, Trump opened a diplomatic crisis in the region by accusing his counterpart of being “a drug trafficking leader” and announcing the immediate suspension of all financial aid to Colombia.
Trump accuses Petro of drug trafficking and suspends aid to Colombia
“Colombian President Gustavo Petro is a drug trafficking leader who encourages the massive production of drugs, both in large and small fields, throughout Colombia,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform..
“It has become by far the biggest business in Colombia, and Petro is doing nothing to stop it, despite large-scale payments and subsidies from the US, which are nothing more than a long-term scam. Starting today, these payments, or any other form of payment or subsidy, will no longer be made to Colombia.”
Trump then threatened that if Petro doesn’t close “these death camps immediately,” the United States “will close them for him, and it won’t be nice.”
Colombia was one of the largest recipients of American aid in the hemisphere—around $413 million that Washington channeled through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)—but that flow of money was disrupted this year due to the closure of USAID.
The agency Reuters He said he could not immediately determine which payments Trump was referring to.
At that time, the response of the Colombian government was immediate. Petro wrote in
For his part, the Colombian Minister of Defense, Pedro Sánchez, described as disrespectful to Colombia any statement that attacks the President of the Republic in the terms used by Trump, emphasizing that Petro was democratically elected. The official defended the country’s commitment to the fight against drugs.
Now, three months later, Petro’s invitation to the White House represents a change in tone between Washington and Bogotá.
Although a date for the meeting has not yet been set, the announcement was interpreted as an attempt to reestablish channels of dialogue in the midst of a context in which the bilateral relationship had suffered tensions close to a diplomatic crisis.
