Colombia's President Warns of 'Real Threat' from U.S. Military Action

Sat Jan 10 2026 04:00:12 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

In a recent interview, Colombia's President Gustavo Petro expressed concern over the U.S. military's potential involvement in Colombia, exacerbated by incendiary rhetoric from former President Trump.

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro has raised alarms about a 'real threat' of U.S. military action against his country, stemming from recent threats made by former U.S. President Donald Trump. Petro criticized U.S. treatment of foreign nations and the aggressive tactics of U.S. immigration enforcement. Following the conversation between the two leaders, which included discussions on drug trafficking and U.S. immigration policy, Petro reinforced his commitment to prioritize dialogue over conflict in navigating Colombia's future amidst growing tensions with the United States.

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro has told the BBC that he believes there is now a real threat of U.S. military action against Colombia.

Petro said the United States is treating other nations as part of a U.S. empire. It comes after Trump threatened Colombia with military action. He said that the U.S. risks transforming from dominating the world to becoming isolated from the world.

He also accused U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents of acting like Nazi brigades. Trump has significantly expanded ICE operations as part of what the administration says is a crackdown on crime and immigrants who illegally entered the U.S.

The BBC has approached the White House for comment.

Following U.S. strikes on Venezuela and the seizure of Nicolás Maduro, U.S. President Donald Trump said a military operation targeting Colombia sounds good. Trump has also repeatedly told Petro to watch his ass, remarks Petro strongly condemned.

Trump and Petro spoke by phone on Wednesday evening, after which Trump described his conversation with Petro as a Great Honour. A Colombian official indicated that the conversation reflected a shift in rhetoric from both sides.\

However, on Thursday, Petro's tone suggested relations had not significantly improved. He told the BBC the call lasted just under an hour, covering drug trafficking in Colombia and the Colombian view on Venezuela.

Petro strongly criticized recent U.S. immigration enforcement, accusing ICE agents of operating like Nazi brigades. He added that if this continued, instead of a United States dominating the world – an imperial dream – it is a United States isolated from the world. An empire was not built by being isolated from the world.

Petro confirmed he had also spoken to Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuela's acting president, denouncing attempts of what he said were covert operations in Colombia.

As the world's largest producer of cocaine, Colombia is a major hub for the global drug trade. The U.S. aims to control Venezuelan oil sales to curb illegal drug trafficking.

With growing tensions and past military threats, Petro indicated that Colombians remain vigilant and that history shows how they defend their sovereignty against oppressive forces.