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President Donald Trump on Wednesday said arrangements are being made for representatives of the United States and Colombia to meet at the White House.
Trump wrote on Truth Social that Colombian President Gustavo Petro “called to explain the situation of drugs and other disagreements” between the two countries, adding that the two leaders are expected to meet in the near future.
“It was a Great Honor to speak with the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, who called to explain the situation of drugs and other disagreements that we have had,” Trump wrote. “I appreciated his call and tone, and look forward to meeting him in the near future.”
Trump said arrangements were also being coordinated between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Colombia’s foreign minister, adding that the meeting will take place at the White House.
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President Donald Trump announced plans for talks with Colombia amid concerns over drug trafficking. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
The announcement came after Trump issued a warning to the Colombian president following a U.S. military operation over the weekend that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
“Colombia’s 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 told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday.
When asked by a reporter to clarify his remarks, Trump claimed that Petro has “cocaine mills and cocaine factories.”
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President Trump has said military action in Colombia “sounds good” to him. (Raul Arboleda/AFP via Getty Images)
When Trump was asked if the U.S. would carry out an operation in Colombia, he responded, “It sounds good to me.”
On Monday, Petro responded to Trump’s comments, saying he would “take up arms” against the U.S. if it attacks his country.
“Although I have not been a military man, I know about war and clandestinity,” Petro wrote in a post on X, translated to English from Spanish. “I swore not to touch a weapon again since the 1989 Peace Pact, but for the Homeland I will take up arms again that I do not want.”
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Trump has claimed Petro is a “sick man” linked to drug trafficking. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)
Petro also dismissed Trump’s claims that he is linked to drug trafficking.
“I am not illegitimate, nor am I a narco,” he wrote. “I only have as assets my family home that I still pay for with my salary. My bank statements have been published. No one could say that I have spent more than my salary. I am not greedy.”
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Petro, a former member of the leftist M-19 guerrilla movement that demobilized in the early 1990s, has condemned U.S. strikes in the region, which the U.S. has said target suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean.
Digital’s Ashley Carnahan and Emma Bussey contributed to this report.
