Overview

• In an Oct. 19 Truth Social post, President Trump said all U.S. “payments or subsidies” to Colombia stop immediately and warned the United States would close drug-production zones if Bogotá does not.
• President Gustavo Petro rejected the charge as misinformed, asserted he has fought narcotrafficking networks, and accused U.S. forces of unlawfully killing fisherman Alejandro Carranza in a Sept. 16 strike he says occurred in Colombian waters.
• The rupture caps weeks of strain after Washington removed Colombia’s anti-drug certification in September and later revoked Petro’s U.S. visa during disputes tied to his UN visit.
• The aid halt threatens long-running counter-narcotics, development and security programs that have delivered hundreds of millions of dollars annually through USAID and other channels.
• U.S. maritime and air operations against suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean have expanded in recent weeks, heightening sovereignty disputes and raising regional security risks.