Trump Calls Colombia’s Petro ‘Terrific’ After White House Meeting While Downplaying Past Insults

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump He held a nearly two-hour meeting with his Colombian counterpart on Tuesday. Gustavo PeterBoth described it as amicable — a dramatic turnaround from weeks before, when Trump accused Petro of pumping cocaine into the United States and threatened his country with military action.

Trump later tried to downplay his past criticism, saying, “He and I weren’t exactly best friends, but I wasn’t insulted because I never met him. I didn’t know him at all.”

“We had a very good meeting,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office at a later event. “I thought she was amazing.”

Petro held his own post-meeting press conference and said the pair emerged with a “positive and optimistic outlook.” “What brings us together is freedom. That’s how the meeting started,” he said.

The Colombian president said Trump gave him a red “Make America Great Again” hat and Petro wanted to put an “s” in “Make America Great Again,” referring to the cultural, economic and historical compatibility of North and South America.

Petro criticized Trump and the USA capture operation of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro. But Trump has recently said the Colombian leader has become more willing to work with his administration to stem the flow of illegal drugs.

Petro later said he and Trump were “looking for ways to get Venezuela moving again,” including energy projects. Trump said the two discussed cooperating on counter-narcotics operations, and Petro echoed that, also noting that there are parts of his country where drug cultivation may be the only way to make a living.

“If people don’t have the option to eat, if they don’t have the option to live in the woods or in places where there’s no transportation to produce something legally, drug trafficking is going to occur,” he said.

Petro also told Trump, “You need to go after the elements,” but in the United States and Colombia, “There is a belief that those in uniform and carrying guns in Colombia are capos. This is the second line of drug trafficking. The top level lives in Dubai, Madrid and Miami.” He said he gave the names to the US president.

Colombia’s president also said he invited Trump to visit the Colombian resort city of Cartagena.

“We didn’t talk about personal matters, but I invited him to Cartagena, told him it was a wonderful, beautiful place to live,” Petro said. He also said he asked Trump for help in mediation. escalating trade war between his country and Ecuador.

Trump gave Petro a copy of his book, “The Art of the Deal,” with a signed inscription that read, “You’re Great.” Petro posted a picture of the book on X and wrote, ironically in Spanish: “What did Trump mean to me with this dedication? I don’t understand English very well.”

Before the meeting, Petro, a left-wing politician, continued to scold the conservative US president, calling Trump “complicit in the genocide” in the Gaza Strip and claiming that Maduro’s capture was a kidnapping.

And before heading to Washington, Petro called on Colombians to take to the streets of Bogota during a White House meeting.

Just minutes before his meeting with Trump began, Petro described himself as a politician who incriminates and prosecutes drug traffickers in a video shared by his office.

Along with one of his daughters and his grandson, he lamented that most of his children were living in exile outside Colombia because of his fight against drug trafficking. “We actually experienced the effects of this directly,” Petro said.

Historically, Colombia has been an ally of the United States. The United States has been working closely with the world’s largest country, Colombia, for the last 30 years. cocaine producerarrest drug traffickersparry rebel groups and accelerate economic development in rural areas. Colombia is also cited by the United States as an important non-NATO ally.

But relations between the leaders have been strained as Trump has massed US forces in the region for unprecedented deadly military strikes targeting suspected drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific. At least 126 people Killed in 36 known attacks.

Trump’s Republican administration announced this in October. implementation of sanctions A lawsuit was filed against Petro, his family and a member of his government over accusations that they were involved in the global drug trade.

Treasury Department equalized penalties against Petro; his wife, Veronica del Socorro Alcocer Garcia; son Nicolas Fernando Petro Burgos; and Colombian Interior Minister Armando Alberto Benedetti.

The sanctions, which had to be waived to allow the Petro to go to Washington this week, came after the US administration made a statement to this effect in September. Adding Colombia For the first time in three decades, it has been added to the list of countries that have failed to cooperate in the drug war.

Then came a daring military operation last month. Catch Maduro and his wife He will face federal drug conspiracy charges, a move that Petro has strongly condemned. Following Maduro’s ouster, Trump warned Colombia and ominously warned Petro that he might be next.

“Colombia is run by a sick man who likes to make cocaine and sell it to the United States,” Trump said of Petro last month. “And he won’t be able to do that for very long, let me tell you.”

However, after a meeting between the leaders a few days later, tensions eased somewhat. Trump said Petro explained “the drug situation and other disagreements” in his hour-long speech. And Trump invited Petro for a White House visit.

As a diplomatic gesture, Colombian officials said Petro arrived with gifts for Trump, including a basket signed by Wounaan indigenous people from Colombia’s Chocó region and a handmade dress by indigenous artisans from Nariño for the first lady. Melania Trump.

Trump did not personally greet Petro upon his arrival and did not pose for a photo with him in front of the assembled press in front of the White House’s North Portico; this was part of the visit of most foreign leaders. Instead, Petro arrived at the side entrance of the White House.

Suarez reported from Bogota, Colombia. Associated Press writers Will Weissert and Moriah Balingit contributed to this report.