Trump announces halts to all US payments, subsidies to Colombia
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Donald Trump halts all US subsidies to Colombia, accusing President Gustavo Petro of encouraging drug production.
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President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after arriving on Air Force One, on October 17, 2025, at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
US President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that he was suspending all forms of payments and subsidies from the United States to Colombia, accusing the country and its president, Gustavo Petro, of actively promoting the mass production of drugs.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said, "President Gustavo Petro, of Colombia, is an illegal drug leader strongly encouraging the massive production of drugs… It has become the biggest business in Colombia, by far, and Petro does nothing to stop it."
Trump added, “As of today, these payments, or any other form of payment, or subsidies, will no longer be made to Columbia.” (Note: misspellings such as "Columbia" were part of the original post.)
The US president further accused Colombia of flooding the United States with drugs in a deliberate campaign, stating that continued US subsidies were a "long-term rip-off" of American taxpayers.
Petro rejects accusations
Colombian President Gustavo Petro swiftly rejected Trump’s accusations, stating that the claims were false and politically motivated. Posting on X, Petro said:
“Trump has been deceived by his associates. The primary adversary of drug trafficking in Colombia in the 21st century was the individual who exposed its connections to the Colombian political establishment. That individual was me.”
Señor Trump, jamás Colombia ha sido grosera con EEUU, al contrario, ha querido mucho su cultura.
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) October 19, 2025
Pero usted es grosero e ignorante con Colombia. Léase, como si lo hizo, su encargado de negocios en Colombia, Cien Años de Soledad, y le aseguró que algo aprenderá de la soledad.
Yo…
Petro emphasized that his fight against drug trafficking is rooted in exposing its ties to elite circles within Colombian politics.
In his response, Petro distanced the American people from Trump, saying: “They are not my enemies, I do not consider them as such. The problem is Trump, not the United States... Mr. Trump, you are rude and ignorant about Colombia... I am not a businessman like you. I am a socialist. I believe in helping others and the common good... If I am not a businessman, let alone a drug dealer, then there is no greed in my heart.”
The diplomatic rift follows another flashpoint: On Saturday, Petro announced that Colombia would take legal action after US military forces allegedly struck a Colombian fishing boat last month in what was claimed to be Colombian waters. The incident has fueled growing tensions between Bogotá and Washington.
