Trump Labels Colombian President Petro a “Drug Kingpin,” Ends U.S. Aid to Bogotá
Story: written by UZUH RITA OCTOBER 20,2025
U.S. President Donald Trump has launched a blistering attack on Colombian President Gustavo Petro, describing him as an “illegal drug leader” and announcing an immediate end to all “large-scale payments and subsidies” to Colombia.
In a post on his Truth Social account on Sunday, Trump accused Petro’s administration of facilitating the production and export of narcotics into the United States.
“The purpose of this drug production is the sale of massive amounts of product into the United States, causing death, destruction, and havoc,” Trump declared.
While Trump did not specify which payments he intended to cut, Colombia has historically been one of the largest recipients of U.S. aid in the Western Hemisphere. However, the flow of funds has sharply declined since the closure of USAID earlier this year.
Neither the Colombian Embassy in Washington, D.C., nor the White House immediately commented on Trump’s remarks. The U.S. State Department referred all inquiries to the White House.
Tensions between the two nations have been escalating since Trump’s return to office. Just last month, Washington revoked President Petro’s U.S. visa after he attended a pro-Palestinian rally in New York, where he allegedly called on American troops to defy Trump’s directives.
Petro, who came to power on a promise to reform Colombia’s coca-growing regions through a mix of social and military initiatives, has struggled to curb cocaine production. His policies have yielded limited results, fueling criticism from Washington.
In September, Trump’s administration placed Colombia on a list of countries that had “failed demonstrably” to uphold international drug control commitments—alongside Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma, and Venezuela.
Blaming Petro’s government for what he called “a total failure” in the war on drugs, Trump wrote:
“Petro is an illegal drug leader strongly encouraging the massive production of drugs. As of today, these payments or any other form of subsidies will no longer be made.”
Analysts say the decision marks one of the lowest points in U.S.–Colombian relations in recent decades and could reshape Washington’s counternarcotics strategy in Latin America.
