Colombia's Leader Declares 'I Would Return to Arms Again' should US Invades.

Donald Trump along with President Gustavo Petro have turned up the tone in their verbal conflict, further raising strains bilaterally after American military units targeted Venezuela in an operation to oust President Nicolás Maduro from office.

"He operates narcotics facilities and cocaine factories and is not going to be doing it very long," Trump added.

Escalating Tensions coupled with Claims

Talking to the press on Sunday, the US president hinted at analogous military action towards the South American nation, asserting Colombia is “very sick too” and “run by a problematic figure who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States."

While Colombia is the world’s largest cocaine-producing country, authorities have found no indication that President Gustavo Petro, elected two years ago, is directly involved in the trade.

A Frayed Alliance

This nation for decades served as a staunch collaborator of the United States in the fight combating drug cartels and benefited from cross-party backing from American politicians, yet ties have soured dramatically after Trump assumed the presidency.

The nation's narcotics trade is largely controlled by criminal organizations such as the Clan del Golfo, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and breakaway groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), a large contingent of whom demobilised after a historic peace agreement.

Colombia's Defiant Answer

When asked if armed intervention like that in Venezuela was being considered against his country, Trump responded: "That seems like a good idea to me."

The Colombian leader, a former leftist guerrilla who demobilised in the 1990s, rejected these allegations. "I am no illegitimate nor am I a drug trafficker," he stated.

"He comments uninformed. Cease defaming me," he wrote in a message.

"If they [the US] bomb peasants, they will turn into numerous insurgents in the mountains. If they capture me, which a large part of the population loves and respects, they will unleash the powerful force of the people," Petro warned.

From Fighter to Statesman

The president dedicated some years as a young man belonging of the leftist M-19 guerrilla group but is not believed that he never participated in combat. Upon leaving the group, he took part in writing a new constitution in the early 90s subsequently becoming an influential politician. He held the office of mayor of Bogotá before winning president.

"I made a vow not to touch arms again ... but for Colombia I shall resume weapons once more," he vowed.

Reinforced Protection along with Broad Condemnation

Minister Pedro Sánchez announced that Petro's protection team had received additional support.

A segment of Colombia’s political right have sided with Trump, yet figures spanning the ideological divide have rejected the threats of American military action targeting Colombia.

Bilateral and Economic Pressure

The US cancelled his travel authorization following he urged US military personnel to disobey orders that violate law. Later, in October, the US enacted economic restrictions targeting Petro, his spouse and various close collaborators.

At the same time while America bolstered its troop levels near Venezuela and targeting alleged narcotics traffickers to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, American military assets also carried out operations on boats in Pacific waters off the Colombian coast.