Colombia's Petro Fires Back At US Sanctions

Colombia’s Petro Fires Back at US Sanctions Colombia Colombian President Gustavo Petro denounced US sanctions imposed on himself, his family, and senior officials this week, as tensions between Bogotá and Washington plunged to their lowest point in years following escalating threats and military action by the US in the Caribbean, the Wall Street Journal reported. On Friday, the US Treasury froze all US-based assets belonging to Petro and the others under the new sanctions regime, accusing the Colombian leader of “allowing drug cartels to flourish.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said cocaine production in Colombia had reached “the highest rate in decades, flooding the United States and poisoning Americans.” Petro denied the allegations, writing on X that “fighting drug trafficking for decades – and effectively – has brought me this measure from the government of the very society we helped so much to curb its cocaine consumption.” The sanctions mark the latest escalation in the feud between Petro and Trump, who last week halted all US aid payments to Colombia and threatened to impose additional tariffs on the country’s exports. Trump accused Petro of being an “illegal drug leader” and warned he needed to close up drug operations, “or the United States will close them up for him, and it won’t be done nicely.” Washington has also launched airstrikes on alleged drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific that have killed at least 43 people. Petro and human rights groups allege that some of the victims were civilians, an accusation the White House denies, according to CBS News. Amid the ongoing spat, the leftist leader recalled Colombia’s ambassador to Washington and countered that the suspension of US aid would have little effect. However, he acknowledged that cuts to military assistance, particularly the loss of US helicopters, would harm anti-drug operations in the South American country, Reuters wrote. Colombia is the world’s largest producer of cocaine, and the supply of the drug has reached a historic peak around the globe, according to US and United Nations anti-drug officials. Although the Colombian government has continued to struggle to take control of major hubs for rebel and criminal activity, Petro said authorities have seized a record amount of cocaine in the past three years, totaling more than 3,000 tons. The former guerrilla leader has floated the idea of legalizing cocaine to weaken the cartels, while complaining that the narcotic was only illegal because it was made in Latin America. Share this story