The United States announced sanctions against Colombian President Gustavo Petro, with President Donald Trump intensifying a growing dispute with one of Washington’s traditional allies. The U.S. claims Petro has failed to curb the trafficking of cocaine into the country. Relations between the U.S. and several Latin American nations have been strained for weeks. The U.S. military has increased operations in the southern Caribbean, striking boats in international waters that it claims—without providing proof—are involved in drug smuggling. Trump recently referred to Petro as an “illegal drug leader” after Petro accused the U.S. of “murder” due to those attacks. Petro, who has less than a year left in office, has consistently opposed the strikes. His administration has pushed peace deals and surrender arrangements with rebel factions and criminal organizations, but these initiatives have achieved limited success.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement, “Under President Gustavo Petro, Colombia’s cocaine output has surged to its highest level in decades, sending drugs into America and harming U.S. citizens.” He further accused Petro of enabling cartels and refusing to stop their operations, calling the sanctions a strong move to protect the United States. Petro rejects the allegations, arguing that his government has intercepted record amounts of cocaine and that coca cultivation growth has slowed every year since 2021. He labeled the U.S. accusations as false, insisting on X that his administration has reduced cocaine production while achieving historic seizure levels.

Petro, who gained prominence by exposing connections between lawmakers and paramilitary drug groups, described the sanction as “paradoxical.” He said he has hired a U.S. attorney, addressed supporters in Bogota, and emphasized that he holds no assets in the United States. Although uncommon, sanctions against a sitting head of state are not without precedent. Petro now joins a small list that includes the leaders of Russia, Venezuela, and North Korea.

Alongside Petro, his wife, his son, and Interior Minister Armando Benedetti were also sanctioned under U.S. anti-drug authorities. Benedetti posted that he was punished simply for stating Petro was not involved in trafficking, calling U.S. drug policy a “sham.” Nicolas Petro, already facing unrelated corruption charges in Colombia, said he was targeted only because he is the president’s son. The sanctions freeze any U.S.-based assets and prohibit Americans from conducting business with those named. White House spokesperson Anna Kelly warned that if Petro does not shut down drug operations, the United States will do it “not nicely.”

Disclaimer: This image is taken from Reuters.