In an interview published Friday by the BBC, Petro accused the United States of acting as an imperial power in Latin America and warned that Trump’s rhetoric should be taken seriously.
After the January 3 raid in Venezuela, Trump reportedly said Colombia might be next and Petro “should watch his ass.” The two leaders held a phone call Wednesday evening, after which Trump invited the Colombian president to the White House.
Petro downplayed suggestions that the call indicated a change in tone. He said the conversation, which lasted under an hour, focused on drug trafficking, Venezuela, and U.S.-Latin America relations.
“The perspective of removing the threat depends on the ongoing talks,” Petro told the BBC.
The Colombian president also criticized the U.S. immigration agency ICE, comparing its actions to “Nazi brigades,” following the fatal shooting of a woman in Minneapolis by an ICE officer. He said the agency had reached a point where it was not only persecuting Latinos in the streets but “killing U.S. citizens.”
Petro, who has positioned himself as a long-time opponent of drug cartels, rejected Trump’s accusations linking him to narcotrafficking. “I’ve been fighting drug cartels for 20 years — at the cost of my family having to leave the country,” he said.
Asked how Colombia would respond to a possible attack, Petro said he preferred a diplomatic solution but acknowledged the country’s limited military capacity.
“We don’t even have anti-air defenses,” he said. “Instead, we rely on the masses, on our mountains and jungles, as we always have.”
Petro also warned that continued U.S. aggression would further isolate Washington on the global stage. “Instead of the United States dominating the world — the imperial dream — we will have a United States isolated from the world.”
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Source: PAP, Polish Radio