Published 10/19/2025 20:58
Colombian President Gustavo Petro reacted to the insults and lies made by Donald Trump. The North American has had the South American leader in his sights for some time, but has started to raise his tone in recent months, since Petro challenged him at the UN General Assembly and called for investigations into US attacks in the Caribbean.
In a publication on the X network, Petro called Trump “rude” and “ignorant” about Colombia. In his speech, which ranged from suggesting reading the classic “One Hundred Years of Solitude” to reaffirming his socialist principles, the Colombian said that the US government threatens humanity through its greed for oil.
When directly rebutting the accusation of involvement in drug trafficking, he pointed out: “If I am not a businessman, much less a drug trafficker, there is no greed in my heart. I have never been able to identify with greed. A mafioso is a human being who personifies the best of capitalism: greed. And I am the opposite, a lover of life and, therefore, an ancient warrior of life. Greed makes us escapes, because life is more powerful.”
The position comes in retaliation against Trump, who, without presenting any evidence, made a serious statement on the Truth Social network, this Sunday (19): “Petro, from Colombia, is an illegal drug leader strongly encouraging the massive production of drugs throughout Colombia. It has become the biggest business in Colombia, by far, and Petro does nothing to stop it, despite large-scale payments and subsidies from the US that are nothing in addition to a long-term theft against America,” said Trump, who indicated that he will permanently cut off any financial transfers to combat trafficking and humanitarian programs.
Following threats, Trump also said that if Petro does not close the drug production fields, he will close them by force and “it will not be legal”.
read more: Petro defies Trump and demands investigation into attacks in the Caribbean
The false allegation permeated with threats made by the US president came after Petro accused him, on Saturday (18), of violating Colombian sovereignty by attacking vessels in the Caribbean Sea under the pretext of the war on drugs. In the words of the President of Colombia, the US Army killed fisherman Alejandro Carranza, denying the military’s claim that the boat that was hit was from the ELN (National Liberation Army) guerrillas.
“The Santa Marta fisherman’s boat did not belong to the ELN; it belonged to a humble family who loved the sea and got their food from there. What do you say to that family? Explain to me why you helped murder a humble fisherman from Santa Marta, the land where Bolívar died, and which they say is the heart of the world. What do you say to the fisherman Alejandro Carranza’s family? He was a humble human being”, he published Petro no X.
The lie about the vessel was conveyed by the US Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, with generic images of an air attack without proof or evidence of a link with such a guerrilla or that it was a vessel transporting narcotics. A similar video was published on the 14th, with an attack on another boat.
The new episode of tension takes place amid the US military occupation of the Caribbean, which aims to destabilize the Venezuelan government. With bombings in the open sea against boats off the coast of neighboring countries and threats of air attacks on dry land, Brazil is closely monitoring the situation and must act to cool the US momentum. With the recent rapprochement with Lula, the Brazilian government must tell Trump that he has nothing to gain from a conflict on the continent, in the same way that it makes no sense to maintain trade sanctions against a trading partner like Brazil.
Source: vermelho.org.br
