‘Actual menace’ of US navy motion in opposition to Colombia, president tells BBC

[ad_1] Ione Wells BBC South America Correspondent, in Bogotá

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/ae3d/live/61298c40-ed1e-11f0-b5f7-49f0357294ff.png.webp" loading="eager" alt="BBC Colombia's President Gustavo Petro wears a serious expression. He is dressed in a dark blue shirt and wears spectacles. " class="sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA"/> BBC Colombia's President Gustavo Petro

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro has informed the BBC that he believes there's now a "actual menace" of US navy motion in opposition to Colombia.

Petro stated america is treating different nations as a part of a US "empire". It comes after Trump threatened Colombia with navy motion. He stated that the US dangers remodeling from "dominating the world" to changing into "remoted from the world."

He additionally accused US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) brokers of performing like "Nazi brigades". Trump has considerably expanded ICE operations as a part of what the administration says is a crackdown on crime and immigrants who illegally entered the US.

The BBC has approached the White Home for remark.

Following US strikes on Venezuela and the seizure of Nicolás Maduro, US President Donald Trump stated a navy operation concentrating on Colombia "sounds good".

Trump has additionally repeatedly informed Petro to "watch his ass", remarks Petro strongly condemned.

Trump and Petro spoke by telephone on Wednesday night, after which Trump stated he would meet his Colombian counterpart on the White Home within the "close to future. Writing on his Reality Social platform late on Wednesday after the decision, Trump described his dialog with Petro as a "Nice Honour". A Colombian official stated on the time that the dialog had mirrored a 180-degree shift in rhetoric "from each side."

However on Thursday, Petro's tone recommended relations had not considerably improved.

He informed the BBC the decision lasted just below an hour, "most of it occupied by me," and lined "drug trafficking Colombia" and Colombia's view on Venezuela and "what is occurring round Latin America relating to america."

Petro strongly criticised latest US immigration enforcement, accusing ICE brokers of working like "Nazi brigades".

President Trump has typically blamed immigration for crime and trafficking within the US, utilizing it to justify large-scale enforcement operations, and has accused nations like Colombia and Venezuela of not doing sufficient to deal with drug-trafficking.

Since returning to the White Home, the US president has despatched ICE brokers to cities throughout the nation. The company enforces immigration legal guidelines and conducts investigations into undocumented immigration. It additionally performs a job in eradicating undocumented immigrants from the US.

The administration says it deported 605,000 folks between 20 January and 10 December 2025. It additionally stated 1.9 million immigrants had "voluntarily self-deported", following an aggressive public consciousness marketing campaign encouraging folks to go away the nation on their very own to keep away from arrest or detention.

About 65,000 folks had been in ICE detention as of 30 November 2025, in response to knowledge obtained by the Transactional Data Entry Clearinghouse's immigration challenge, a compendium of presidency knowledge from Syracuse College.

This week a US immigration agent shot lifeless a 37-year-old US citizen within the metropolis of Minneapolis, sparking protests in a single day.

Federal officers stated the girl, Renee Nicole Good, had tried to run over immigration brokers together with her automobile however the metropolis mayor, Democrat Jacob Frey, stated the agent who shot her had acted recklessly and demanded brokers depart the town.

Petro stated ICE had "reached the purpose the place it not solely persecutes Latin People within the streets, which for us is an affront, however it additionally kills United States residents."

He added that if this continued, "as a substitute of a United States dominating the world – an imperial dream – it's a United States remoted from the world. An empire was not constructed by being remoted from the world."

Petro stated the US has for "a long time" handled different governments, notably in Latin America, as an "empire" whatever the regulation.

The 2 leaders have lengthy been adversaries, continuously buying and selling insults and tariff threats on social media.

Following the US's navy motion in Venezuela, Petro accused Washington of searching for wars over "oil and coal," including that if the US had not pulled out of the Paris Settlement, the place nations agreed to restrict world temperature rising by decreasing fossil gasoline use, "there can be no wars, there can be a way more democratic and peaceable relationship with the world. And South America."

"The Venezuelan problem is about this," he stated.

After Trump's feedback threatening navy motion in Colombia, demonstrations had been held throughout the nation within the identify of sovereignty and democracy.

Petro informed the BBC that Trump's remarks amounted to a "actual menace", citing Colombia's lack of territory resembling Panama within the twentieth century, and stated "the prospect of eradicating [the threat] depends upon the continued conversations."

Requested how Colombia would defend itself within the occasion of a US assault, Petro stated he would "desire it to be about dialogue." He stated that "work is being finished" on this.

However he added: "Colombia's historical past exhibits the way it has responded to giant armies."

"It isn't about confronting a big military with weapons we do not have. We do not even have anti-aircraft defenses. As a substitute, we depend on the plenty, our mountains, and our jungles, as we all the time have."

Petro confirmed he had additionally spoken to Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuela's performing president and former vice chairman and oil minister, and invited her to Colombia.

He stated Venezuela had "lengthy been topic to interference by varied intelligence companies," including that whereas such companies had permission to function in Colombia, it was solely to fight drug trafficking. He denounced makes an attempt at what he stated had been different "covert operations" in Colombia.

He didn't straight remark when requested whether or not he feared the CIA might perform covert operations just like their actions in Venezuela in Colombia, or whether or not he feared his personal authorities or internal circles might have informants.

Maduro was captured by the US military's Delta Power, the navy's prime counter-terrorism unit, after a CIA supply in Venezuelan authorities helped the US monitor his location.

Because the world's largest producer of cocaine, Colombia is a significant hub for the worldwide drug commerce. It additionally has vital oil reserves, in addition to gold, silver, emeralds, platinum and coal.

The US has stated it would management gross sales of Venezuelan oil "indefinitely" because it prepares to roll again restrictions on the nation's crude in world markets.

Talking aboard Air Power One after the Venezuela operation, Trump described Petro as a "sick man who likes making cocaine and promoting it to america," including: "He is not going to be doing it for very lengthy."

Petro denied the claims, saying it has "all the time been confirmed that I am not concerned in that."

"For 20 years I've been preventing in opposition to the drug cartels, at the price of my household having to enter exile," he stated.

A former guerrilla, Petro has pursued a "whole peace" technique since taking workplace, prioritising dialogue with armed teams. Critics say the strategy has been too comfortable, with cocaine manufacturing reaching report ranges.

Requested what failed and whether or not he accepted accountability, Petro stated coca cultivation development was slowing and described "two simultaneous approaches."

"One, speaking about peace with teams which might be bandits. And the opposite, creating a navy offensive in opposition to those that don't desire peace."

He stated negotiations had been ongoing in southern Colombia, "the place the best discount in coca leaf cultivation has occurred" and "the place the murder fee in Colombia has fallen probably the most." Cocaine is constituted of the leaves of the coca plant.