President Donald Trump issued a stark warning to Colombian President Gustavo Petro regarding drug trafficking operations, suggesting military intervention remains on the table if the South American nation fails to address its decades-long narcotics crisis.
The threat comes amid escalating tensions between Washington and Bogotá following recent U.S. military operations in the region.
Trump made his position clear while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One before returning to the White House from his Mar-A-Lago estate.
“Colombia is very sick, too. Run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States. And he’s not going to be doing it very long, let me tell you,” Trump stated bluntly.
When a reporter pressed Trump on whether future U.S. operations within Colombian territory were being considered, the president responded immediately.
“Sounds good to me,” he said without hesitation.
The confrontation intensifies an already strained relationship between Trump and Petro, who have clashed repeatedly over the past year.
The Colombian leader has characterized the United States as a rogue “colonial” state and made unsubstantiated accusations against Trump regarding involvement in Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.
Petro escalated tensions during an Oct. 25 address to the UN General Assembly, according to media reports.
He urged American soldiers to disobey Trump’s orders if they involved inhumane actions. Trump responded by revoking Petro’s visa.
Following Saturday’s U.S. operation that resulted in Maduro’s capture, Petro immediately deployed troops to Colombia’s border.
He also called for United Nations intervention in the matter.
Colombia’s drug trafficking problem originated in the 1970s when the country became a major marijuana supplier to the United States after interdiction efforts shifted focus from Mexico.
The situation deteriorated significantly by the 1980s as large-scale cocaine production and export took hold.
Powerful cartels based in Medellín and Cali dominated the trade during this period.
These organizations established Colombia as the epicenter of the cocaine industry that plagued both the nation and its primary market in the United States.
Guerrilla organizations soon became entangled in the narcotics trade.
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as FARC, emerged in 1964 as the military wing of the Colombian Communist Party.
During the peak of Colombia’s cocaine-trafficking crisis, FARC became heavily involved in drug operations.
While FARC’s influence has diminished, the National Liberation Army, or ELN, remains deeply embedded in drug-trafficking activities.
The group stands as Colombia’s second-largest guerrilla organization and continues to pose significant challenges to regional stability.
The ELN maintains strong ties with Venezuela’s ruling regime.
The group has received sanctuary, training camps, and operational freedom across at least 12 Venezuelan states dating back to the Chávez era. In exchange, the ELN provides support to Maduro’s government, functioning as a paramilitary-like force against opposition groups.
The organization controls border crossings used for contraband smuggling.
Estimates suggest the ELN derives up to 70 percent of its profits from Venezuelan illicit activities, including gold and coltan mining operations.
The United States designated the ELN as a terrorist organization and has launched multiple strikes against the group since Trump authorized military action against drug traffickers in the region.
On October 17, 2025, a U.S. missile strike hit an ELN vessel in the Pacific off Colombia’s coast, killing three people.
Most recently, on December 31, 2025, Petro reported that American forces targeted a cocaine processing facility in Maracaibo, Venezuela.
The facility was allegedly operated by the ELN, according to the Colombian president’s account of the strike.
