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Updated - January 05, 2026 12:47 pm IST - Bogotá

This combination of pictures created on January 04, 2026 shows Colombian President Gustavo Petro and U.S. President Donald Trump | Photo Credit: AFP

Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro on Sunday (January 4, 2026) rejected threats by his US counterpart Donald Trump who also accused him of being a drug trafficker.

U.S. forces attacked Caracas in the early hours of Saturday (January 3, 2026), bombing military targets during a shock snatch-and-grab raid to remove Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro from power and assert Washington’s control over the oil-rich South American nation.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday (January 4) Mr. Trump made similar threats of military action against Colombia, saying the South American country is “very sick too” and “run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States.”

“He has cocaine mills and cocaine factories and is not going to be doing it very long,” Mr. Trump added.

When asked whether military intervention similar to Venezuela was on the cards for Colombia, the Republican leader said: “It sounds good to me.”

“You know why because they kill a lot of people,” Mr. Trump claimed without evidence.

Mr. Petro rebuffed the accusations saying his “name does not appear in court records.”

“Stop slandering me, Mr. Trump.” Mr. Petro said on the social media platform X.

“That’s not how you threaten a Latin American president who emerged from the armed struggle and then from the people of Colombia’s fight for Peace.”

Also Read I U.S. imposes sanctions on Colombia’s President and family members over drug trade allegations

Mr. Petro has harshly criticized the Trump administration’s military action in the region and accused Washington of abducting Mr. Maduro “without legal basis.”

In a later post to X on Sunday (January 4, 2026) Mr. Petro added “friends do not bomb.”