Washington (TDI): In a remarkable shift in tone, US President Donald Trump has said he is arranging a visit to the White House for Colombian President Gustavo Petro, just days after suggesting that military action against Colombia “sounds good” to him.
The announcement came following the first direct phone call between Trump and Petro since he returned to the White House in January 2025.
The two leaders discussed bilateral relations, including disagreements over drug trafficking and broader tensions that had strained ties.
Trump took to social media to describe the call as an honor. “It was a great honor to speak with the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, who called to explain the situation of drugs and other disagreements that we have had,” the US president wrote, adding that he appreciated the tone of the conversation and looks forward to meeting Petro in the near future.
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Petro, Colombia’s first leftist head of state, confirmed the call to supporters at a rally in Bogotá and said he had urged a restart of dialogue between the two nations.
A source in Petro’s office told Reuters the call was “cordial” and “respectful,” a stark contrast to recent months of fraught exchanges.
Relations between Trump and Petro have been tense for months. Trump has repeatedly accused the Colombian government of enabling a steady flow of cocaine into the United States, and in October imposed sanctions on Petro and some members of his administration.
The tension reached a peak last weekend when Trump, after ordering US forces to capture Venezuela’s president in a surprise military action, suggested that a similar intervention in Colombia would “sound good” to him, a comment that sparked alarm in Bogotá and drew condemnation from regional leaders.
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On Sunday, Trump referred to Petro as “a sick man, who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States.” The US had previously revoked Petro’s visa in September after he participated in a pro-Palestinian demonstration in New York following a UN General Assembly meeting, during which he called on US soldiers to “disobey the orders of Trump.”
Petro has also been an outspoken critic of Israel’s war in Gaza, accusing the US of being “complicit in genocide” and calling for criminal investigations over US missile strikes on suspected drug-running boats in the Caribbean. Since September, the US campaign targeting these boats has killed at least 110 people.
Despite the volatile rhetoric, both leaders appear to be exploring ways to reset relations. The planned White House meeting would be a symbolic moment of diplomacy after weeks of harsh public statements on both sides.
Minahil Khurshid holds a master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Studies from CIPS, NUST. She has a strong interest in current affairs, geopolitics, and policy analysis.
