Sharp diplomatic tensions escalated as Donald Trump issued threats against Colombia amid international backlash over Maduro’s abduction incident.
Maryland
Diplomatic relations across the Americas were jolted after Donald Trump publicly threatened Colombia’s leadership and suggested potential action against Havana, following Washington’s controversial abduction of Venezuela’s leader Nicolas Maduro. The remarks, while Trump was speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, triggered swift condemnation from multiple countries and intensified concerns over regional stability.
Trump described Colombia and Venezuela as very sick countries and launched a personal attack on Colombian President Gustavo Petro, accusing him of links to cocaine production and trafficking into the United States. And he’s not going to be doing it very long, Trump said, adding to the severity of his comments. When asked whether he was hinting at a possible US operation against Colombia, Trump responded, Sounds good to me, a remark that further inflamed diplomatic tensions.
The comments came as Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Uruguay, and Spain jointly condemned the US action against Maduro, calling it a dangerous precedent for peace and regional security. Regional leaders and diplomats warned that such actions risk destabilising Latin America and undermining international norms governing sovereignty and non-intervention.
President Petro responded sharply, urging Trump to stop slandering him and warning that Latin America must unite or risk being treated as a servant and slave. In a series of detailed posts on X, Petro recalled historical grievances, noting that the United States was the first country in the world to bomb a South American capital in all of human history. However, he stressed that retaliation was not the solution.
Instead, Petro called for deeper regional cooperation and a broader global outlook. Latin America, he argued, must strengthen its capacity to understand, trade, and cooperate with all regions of the world, not just the north. We do not look only to the north, but in all directions, he said, positioning unity and diplomacy as the path forward amid escalating geopolitical strain.
