Trump-Petro spat threatens Colombian security, economy, joint counter-drug efforts
Tensions between Colombia and the United States reached a new peak Sunday, with Donald Trump calling Colombian President Gustavo Petro “an illegal drug dealer”, promising to end “payments” to the country, and even alluding to military action against Colombian drug producers.
The White House’s threat to suspend all funds to Colombia could deal a heavy blow to the country’s security forces at a critical time and curb the Trump administration’s counter-narcotics efforts. Reports the White House is considering tariffs on imports from the South American nation also threaten to undermine the country’s economy, which depends on exports to the U.S.
Trump’s announcement follows a year of tumultuous relations with Petro, who has clashed with the White House on issues ranging from deportations to drug control, most recently accusing the U.S. of violating Colombian sovereignty in an alleged attack on a fishing boat on Sept. 15.
“President Gustavo Petro, of Columbia, is an illegal drug leader strongly encouraging the massive production of drugs,” Trump wrote Trump in a Sunday morning post on Truth Social, misspelling the country’s name. He adde that “any… form of payment, or subsidies, will no longer be made to Colombia.”
His announcement came hours after Petro claimed that a U.S. boat attack in the Caribbean last month “invaded our national territory, with a missile aimed at a humble fisherman.”
‘Worst case scenario’
Trump’s declaration has caused alarm in Colombia, which already lost 70% of all humanitarian funds when the White House shuttered USAID programs worldwide in February.
Sunday’s announcement could signal fresh cuts, this time to vital security assistance, which made up 64% of the $14.2 billion in aid to Colombia from the U.S. since 2000, according to the Washington Office on Latin America, a research and advocacy group.
“If that funding was to be cut I think we’re really looking at a real worst-case scenario,” said Elizabeth Dickinson, Senior Colombia Analyst at International Crisis Group, an independent organization that works to prevent wars.
Colombia’s police and army depend on the U.S. not just for direct funding but also for training, intelligence and communications. Currently Colombia’s security forces are facing their biggest threat since the 2016 peace deal with FARC rebels, fighting a slew of powerful armed groups tied to the narcotics trade.
“Colombia is currently facing its most serious internal security crisis in the last decade, and the capabilities of the security forces are already very stretched,” Dickinson said.
A full-blown funding cut could not only jeopardize Colombia’s internal security goals but would also deal a blow to an alliance that has been crucial to Washington’s counter-narcotics policy over the last three decades.
The overlap between Colombian and U.S. goals was exemplified when Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced Sunday that Washington destroyed an alleged drug boat on Friday belonging to the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas, who are currently fighting the Colombian military.
A full funding cut “would really be sort of the U.S. shooting themselves in the foot in terms of counter-narcotics policy,” Dickinson said.
Empty threat?
Given the potential blowback of cutting funds to the Colombian military, Trump’s announcement may be an empty threat.
“It’s really hard to imagine a Republican administration doing that. But if they do, the outcry within the Defense Department will be just deafening,” said Adam Isacson, director for Defense Oversight at Washington Office on Latin America.
Despite political tensions between the White House and Bogotá this year, the security establishments in Colombia and the U.S. still enjoy close ties.
But that alliance will be put to the test if the White House cuts funds or follows through with a thinly veiled threat to use direct military force inside Colombia.
“Petro… better close up these killing fields immediately, or the United States will close them up for him, and it won’t be done nicely,” Trump said Sunday.
Isacson told the Herald he believes it unlikely the White House will engage in unilateral military action: “It’s not well thought out, and it’s certainly not something that I think came out of conversations with the Pentagon.”
Blow to Colombia’s economy
In addition to security ramifications, Trump’s backlash against Petro could deal a blow to Colombia’s economy.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham posted on X that Trump is planning to announce “major Tariffs against the Country of Colombia, today or tomorrow.”
If true, the measures could be devastating for Colombia’s economy, which is highly reliant on exports to the U.S., its largest trading partner. In 2024, Colombia’s exports to the U.S. were valued at around $15 billion, according to the United Nations database on international trade.
Maria Claudia Lacouture, president of the Colombian-American Chamber of Commerce, responded to Graham, saying: “Hitting ‘the wallet’ doesn’t strike a president; it lands on workers, farmers, and small businesses.”
Lacouture joined the voices calling for restraint and diplomacy, telling the Herald: “Preserving bilateral relations and diplomatic channels is essential to protect the progress made and avoid setbacks in the country’s growth, stability and reputation.”