Colombian President Gustavo Petro has warned that he would “take up arms” if the United States were to attack him or his country, following a series of threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Petro highlighted his efforts to combat drug trafficking—efforts that Trump has criticized—and went on to claim that U.S. military strikes against traffickers in Colombia would risk killing children and would fuel recruitment into separatist armed groups that have been in conflict with the state for decades.
“And if they arrest a president who has the support and respect of a large part of the country, they will trigger a popular uprising,” Petro added.
Petro, a former member of the M-19 guerrilla movement, also said that he himself would fight to defend Colombia, CNN reports.
“I swore never to touch weapons again… but for the homeland, I will take up arms once more,” he said.
Trump used harsh language against Petro on Sunday, describing him as “a sick man who likes to produce cocaine and sell it to the United States—and he won’t be doing that for very long.”
When asked by a reporter whether these comments implied a possible future “operation” in Colombia, Trump replied, “Sounds good to me.”
Speaking to The New York Times on Monday, Colombia’s Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez declined to engage with Trump’s threats, instead emphasizing that the two countries maintain “a very close relationship.”
Sánchez said he remains in contact with U.S. officials and that potential military strikes against Colombia have not been discussed in recent talks, the Times reported.
