US sanctions Colombia's president, accuses him of allowing expansion of drug trade

WASHINGTON/BOGOTA/MEXICO CITY, Oct 24 (Reuters) – The U.S. on Friday imposed sanctions on Colombian President Gustavo Petro, as President Donald Trump sharply escalated a feud with Washington’s longtime Latin American ally over accusations that Petro has refused to stop the flow of cocaine into the United States.

Since weeks, tensions have risen between Washington and several countries in the area. The U.S. has increased activity on the southern Caribbean by striking vessels that it has claimed without evidence to be carrying drugs. This week, Trump called Petro a ” illegal drugs leader ” after the leftist President accused the U.S. committing “murder”.

Petro’s term ends in 10 months and he has always been against the strikes. His attempts to end Colombia’s six decade conflict by negotiating peace with rebels and criminal gangs have not been successful.

In a recent statement, U.S. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent stated that “since President Gustavo Petro took power, Colombian cocaine production has exploded at the highest rate for decades, flooding the United States, and poisoning Americans.”

“President Petro allowed drug cartels flourish and refused this activity. President Trump has taken strong actions to protect the nation today and makes it clear that we won’t tolerate drug trafficking into our nation.

Petro disputes the U.S. accusations, saying that his government has seized cocaine at an unprecedented rate and that the expansion of coca plants – the main ingredient in cocaine – has been slowing every year since 2021.

Petro told X Friday afternoon that “What the U.S. Treasury claims is a lie.” “My government didn’t increase cocaine; it did the exact opposite. My government has seized the most cocaine in history.”

Petro, who rose to prominence in his first role as a Senator by exposing the links between paramilitary groups and some of their fellow legislators involved in cocaine trafficking called earlier this sanction “a complete contradiction”.

He claimed to have hired an American lawyer to represent him, and he spoke to a crowd of thousands in central Bogota Friday night. He also said that he did not have any money in the United States.

While rare, the imposition on a state head of sanction is not unheard of. Petro joins a list of leaders that also includes those from Russia, Venezuela, and North Korea.

Petro’s son and daughter, as well as Armando Benedetto, Colombia’s Interior Minister, were also sanctioned on Friday, under the authority which allows Washington to target individuals it suspects of involvement in the illicit global drug trade.

Benedetti told X that he was penalized because he said that Petro wasn’t a drug dealer and that sanctions showed that the U.S. war on drugs was a “sham.”

The former lawmaker Nicolas Petro said that he is being targeted because he is the son of his father. He also claimed his case had nothing to do with drug dealing.

The action taken on Friday freezes all assets in the United States of those targeted, and prevents Americans from doing business with them.

Anna Kelly, White House spokesperson, said that “President Trump made it clear to President Petro that he must close these killing fields as soon as possible, or else the United States would close them for him and not in a nice way.”

Clashes since Trump took office

Trump and Petro have clashed numerous times since Trump became the Republican U.S. President in January. This includes an escalating dispute stemming from U.S. attacks on vessels suspected of transporting drugs.

Trump warned last weekend that he would raise tariffs against Colombia. He said all funding had been stopped for the country on Wednesday.

In a separate Friday statement, the State Department stated that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would not certify Colombia’s anti-narcotics effort.

The United States has revoked Petro’s visa.

In the beginning of this year, Petro and Trump had a spat over Colombia’s refusal accept military aircraft that carried deported immigrants.

Petro had also differed with Trump’s Democratic successor Joe Biden and criticised the U.S. at times for not taking sufficient responsibility to deal with Americans’ demand illegal drugs.

Petro and Biden also found common ground in issues like climate change, migration and drug enforcement.

Brett Bruen is the head of Global Situation Room, a consultancy that advises former president Barack Obama on foreign policy. He said Trump created more problems when he imposed sanctions against Petro and conducted strikes against suspected drug traffickers near the coast of Colombia.

“These cowboy antics may be entertaining to his social media base, but they create very combustible situations that we will have to deal with soon on our doorstep,” Bruen stated.

The Colombian Foreign Ministry said that Petro, in a Sunday night meeting with the U.S. charge-d’affaires for Colombia, “reiterated how important it is for the United States to base its assessments on accurate information regarding Colombia’s drug war.”

Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis in Washington; Matt Spetalnick in Bogota; Julia Symmes Cobb and Brendan O’Boyle, in Mexico City. Editing by Humeyra Pauk, David Gregorio, and Rosalba O’Brien

Source:https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-sanctions-colombian-president-petro-citing-illicit-drugs-2025-10-24/

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