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By Jesus Mesa and Hollie Silverman
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Colombia has recalled its ambassador to the United States following an escalating diplomatic clash with President Donald Trump, who accused Colombian President Gustavo Petro of being an "illegal drug leader" and threatened to cut aid and impose new tariffs.
Colombia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that Ambassador Daniel Garcia-Peña had returned to Bogotá for consultations. The ministry said that decisions regarding next steps would be announced shortly.
Newsweek has reached out to the White House for comment on Monday afternoon.
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Why It Matters
Tensions between Washington and Bogotá have escalated after a series of U.S. military strikes on vessels in the Caribbean that U.S. officials say were transporting drugs. The Trump administration argues the campaign, which has included at least seven strikes and more than 30 deaths since early September, is intended to pressure Venezuela and its president, Nicolás Maduro.
Two of those killed were reportedly Colombian fishermen, according to RTVC, the country’s state media. In a forceful response, Petro denounced the strike on social media, accusing the U.S. of violating Colombia’s sovereignty and committing what he described as "an act of murder."
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What To Know
The announcement came after Trump, speaking from Air Force One over the weekend, threatened to end aid payments to Colombia and introduce new tariffs on imports, claiming that Colombian officials were complicit in the drug trade. Trump also warned Petro to eliminate coca cultivation sites or the U.S. would do it "and it won’t be done nicely."
Later in the day, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that Colombia has “no fight against drugs” and “they are a drug manufacturing machine” with “a lunatic” for a president. He said that he would announce new tariffs on Monday.
Petro, who is known to be vocal on social media, strongly rejected Trump’s accusations. “Mr. Trump, Colombia has never been rude to the United States … but you are rude and ignorant to Colombia,” he wrote on X. “Since I am not a businessman, I am even less a drug trafficker. There is no greed in my heart.”
On Monday, Petro declared that the Free Trade Agreement between Colombia and the U.S., in place since 2010, is now “de facto suspended.” He attributed the suspension to what he described as a unilateral decision by the Trump administration to impose 10 percent tariffs on Colombian goods earlier this year.
The dispute comes at a sensitive time for Colombia, which is facing its worst security crisis in a decade, according to estimates by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Armed and criminal groups continue to operate in coca-producing regions. Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, has proposed addressing the issue through combined social and military efforts, though results have been limited.
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The stakes are also high for Colombia’s economy and its relationship with its largest trading partner. According to the Colombian-American Chamber of Commerce, 35 percent of Colombia's exports go to the U.S., while 70 percent of imports from the U.S. are goods not produced domestically. Trump's proposed tariffs could deal a serious blow to the Colombian economy, already facing a trade deficit with the U.S. of $338 million between January and July, according to the government statistics agency DANE.
The potential aid cutbacks are also significant. Colombia had been set to receive over $400 million in U.S. assistance this year, but cuts reduced that figure to about $230 million. The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) warns the loss of further support would be devastating for both countries.
“Withdrawing aid from your top anti-narcotics ally is counterproductive and makes stopping drugs to the US even harder. It’s shooting yourself in the foot,” Gimena Sánchez-Garzoli, WOLA’s Andes director, wrote in a post on X.
The latest survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) found that coca bush cultivation in Colombia increased by 10 percent in 2023, reaching record levels. Petro said the surge began under former President Iván Duque, a right-wing leader who governed from 2018 to 2022, blaming him for failing to implement the 2016 peace agreement between the leftist FARC guerrilla and then-President Juan Manuel Santos. That accord was strongly supported by former President Barack Obama and, in its early years, by Trump.
Despite U.S. decertification of Colombia’s drug control efforts in September—the first such action in nearly 30 years—the White House had insisted at the time that Colombia remained a vital partner. But that stance appeared to shift over the weekend.
Petro vs. Trump: A Year of Escalating Blows
Tensions between Petro and Trump began in early 2025 after a diplomatic dispute over deportation flights. On January 26, Petro said the U.S. could not treat Colombian migrants “as criminals” and blocked two U.S. military aircraft carrying deported Colombians from landing in the country. Trump responded by threatening tariffs and sanctions.
The crisis was resolved later that day when Colombia agreed to accept the deportees under U.S. terms and Washington held off on the tariffs, but the incident left a lasting strain on relations.
By mid-2025, the relationship had further deteriorated. The U.S. formally decertified Colombia as a partner in the war on drugs, a move Petro called politically motivated. In September, tensions deepened again after Petro, speaking at a pro-Palestinian rally in New York, urged U.S. soldiers to “disobey the orders of Trump.” Washington responded by revoking Petro’s U.S. visa, an unusual action against a sitting head of state.
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What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump said on Truth Social on Saturday: “President Gustavo Petro, of Colombia, is an illegal drug leader strongly encouraging the massive production of drugs, in big and small fields, all over 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 USA that are nothing more than a long term rip off of America.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro wrote on X on Monday: "As Trump says, we're out of control, it's true. The only real control over a democracy is not exercised by foreigners who hate migrants and who hate Latin Americans; it is exercised by the people themselves. Trump does not control Colombia, he obeys only the Colombian and Latin American people, if he wants."
Representative Maria Elvira Salazar, a Florida Republican, wrote on X on Sunday: “President Trump’s decision to cut payments and subsidies to Colombia is Petro’s fault and no one else’s. Petro attacks Trump while protecting narcos and engaging in the drug business. He prefers to attack the United States instead of combating drug trafficking. He deserves neither respect nor a single cent of aid.”
She added: "From before his election, I always warned about it: Gustavo Petro is a thief guerrilla, a Marxist, and an ally of terrorism. Today Colombia is worse off: criminal groups are growing, drug trafficking is expanding, and coca production is multiplying. God willing, in less than ten months, the guerrilla IS OUT."
What Happens Next?
In a post on X, Petro said he would decide the government’s response after a Cabinet meeting on Monday where he is expected to address the U.S. announcement regarding tariffs and foreign aid.
Update 10/20/25, 2:05 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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