Trump hits Colombian President Petro with sanctions
The Trump administration leveled sanctions directly on Colombian President Gustavo Petro as well as his family members, escalating his feud with the South American leader.
The Treasury Department sanctions accused Petro of failing to stem cocaine production in the country, a claim that comes as the Department of War has been striking ships throughout the region that they’ve accused without evidence of ferrying drugs.
“President Petro has allowed drug cartels to flourish and refused to stop this activity. Today, President Trump is taking strong action to protect our nation and make clear that we will not tolerate the trafficking of drugs into our nation,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.
Petro’s team has called the accusations offensive.
The sanctions come after Petro earlier this week accused the U.S. of murder, saying one of the strikes killed a “lifelong fisherman.”
“U.S. government officials have committed a murder and violated our sovereignty in territorial waters,”
Colombia has been a top recipient of U.S. aid in Latin America, a figure that diminished with the close of USAID. Nonetheless, following Petro’s comments, President Trump said he would slash remaining security funding given to the country – much of which is used for counternarcotics.
Trump also said he planned to increase tariffs on the country.
Petro said this week while the humanitarian aid matters little, “in military aid we would have some problems.”
The Colombian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The move marks further deterioration in U.S.-Colombia relations, one of the closest American partners in the region, particularly through a 15-year endeavor known as Plan Colombia, in which the U.S. sent billions to the country to stem the flow of drugs and combat guerilla violence.
The Trump administration has argued those efforts have failed.
“Since President Gustavo Petro came to power, cocaine production in Colombia has exploded to the highest rate in decades, flooding the United States and poisoning Americans,” Bessent said in the release.
Petro’s wife and son are also targeted by the sanctions, as is another government official.
The sanctions come the day after White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump has no interest in backing away from his fight with Colombia.
“I don't think we're seeing de-escalation from the unhinged leader of Colombia right now, and I don't think the president frankly is interested in that at this point,” she said Thursday.