US imposes sanctions on Colombian president, his wife and son

The decision is the latest in a growing diplomatic row between the South American country's first leftist leader and Trump. The two have clashed over US raids on ships in the Caribbean that Washington says are used to smuggle drugs.

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Gustavo Petro, Photo: Reuters

Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

25.10.2025. 13:28h

The administration of US President Donald Trump has imposed sanctions on the President of Colombia, Gustavo Pedro, accusing him of failing to curb drug trafficking and allowing drug cartels to "flourish."

This is the latest decision in a growing diplomatic dispute between the South American country's first leftist leader and Trump.

The two clashed over US attacks on ships in the Caribbean Sea that Washington claims are used for drug smuggling.

Dozens of people were killed in the attacks, including some Colombian citizens.

Trump said the attacks were carried out because other countries failed to stop the ships, while Petro accused him of "murder."

Colombia was once a close ally of Washington in the war on drugs, receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in annual military aid to combat drug gangs.

America is also training Colombian agents in the fight against drug trafficking, and the Trump administration has said that this will continue.

But in the sanctions decision, Washington singled out Peter as the leader of a "disastrous and ineffective" drug policy that led to a huge increase in cocaine production.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said that since Petro came to power, cocaine production in Colombia "has exploded at the highest rate in decades, flooding the United States and poisoning Americans."

Sanctions were also imposed on Colombian Interior Minister Armando Benedetti, as well as Peter's wife and eldest son.

Everyone is prohibited from accessing any property they may own in the US.

Petro responded that he has been fighting drug trafficking for decades and that his administration has stopped the growth of coca crops.

"What the US Treasury Department is doing is arbitrariness typical of a repressive regime," he said.

Cocaine production is currently at a record high in Colombia, according to researcher Hector Galeano of the Institute for Advanced Social and Cultural Studies of Latin America and the Caribbean, based in Colombia.

The US Treasury Department has said that cocaine from Colombia is often purchased by Mexican cartels, who then smuggle it into the US.

Washington also announced that Colombia's certificate as an ally in the war on drugs, which had previously provided it with financial support, has been revoked.

Colombia responded that it would stop buying weapons from the US.

Petro claims that during the government of his predecessor, Ivan Duque, the area planted with coca increased.

He also says that in order to reduce coca cultivation, it is necessary to reduce the demand for cocaine in the US and Europe.

His primary attempts to curb drug-related crime in Colombia have focused on facilitating peace talks between warring cartels that have been instigating and carrying out violence for decades.

His campaign promise to bring "total peace" to Colombia appears to be falling apart, as gang clashes become more brutal and frequent, and negotiations between them have stalled.

In an interview with the BBC in September, Petro said that US airstrikes on alleged drug ships in the Caribbean were "an act of tyranny."

Around the same time, in a speech before the United Nations in New York, he claimed that the attacks were not aimed at combating drug trafficking, but at the need to use "violence to dominate Colombia and all of Latin America."

Imposing sanctions on a head of state is rare, but not unprecedented.

The leaders of Russia, North Korea and Venezuela are also under sanctions, as well as Former President of Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik.

During the UN General Assembly session in September, Petro took to the streets of New York and called on US soldiers to refuse Trump's orders.

Because of this, many Republicans, Trump's supporters, demanded that he be expelled from the US because, as a foreigner, he participated in an anti-government rally and interfered in the internal politics of another country.

The US authorities then revoked his visa.

The State Department described Petrov's comments at a pro-Palestinian street protest as "reckless and inflammatory."

The Colombian leader had previously called for a criminal investigation into US military airstrikes on ships in the Caribbean that were allegedly transporting drugs.

Petro was already on his way to Bogota, the capital of Colombia, when the US announced that it would revoke his visa, Colombian media reported at the time.

Colombia has long been known as one of the main countries for the production of the most dangerous drugs, primarily cocaine.

A few years ago, Colombian authorities arrested notorious drug lord Dair Antonio Usug, also known as Othoniel.

Otoniel was the leader of Colombia's most powerful criminal gang for more than nine years.

He was arrested in his hideout in Colombia in October 2021 and extradited to the US last year.

Othoniel led the Gulf Clan cartel and was wanted by America on charges of drug trafficking, the murder of police officers, and the recruitment of children for criminal activities, among other things.

Colombia then extradited him to the United States, and he pleaded guilty in a US court to drug trafficking charges.

Watch video: Tons of cocaine found in boat after speedboat chase in Colombia

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