Trump meets Colombia’s Petro weeks after calling him a ‘sick man’ fuelling drug trade

President Donald Trump welcomed Colombian President Gustavo Petro to the White House on Tuesday for a closely watched meeting that is currently under way , signalling a cautious diplomatic reset amid deep mistrust between two allies divided over drugs, security and regional power politics. Officials said updates will be provided as talks continue .

The visit marks the first face-to-face encounter between the two leaders since Trump returned to office and follows months of unusually hostile exchanges. During that period, Trump publicly threatened military action , imposed sanctions on Petro and his family, and accused the leftist leader of presiding over a country flooded with cocaine bound for the United States.

US officials said the talks are focusing on regional security cooperation , counternarcotics efforts and economic ties. Trump suggested ahead of the meeting that Petro had recently softened his stance on working with Washington to curb drug flows, saying the Colombian leader’s attitude shifted after a US operation targeting Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro.

Yet tensions remain close to the surface. In recent days, Petro has continued to criticise Trump, calling him an accomplice to civilian deaths in Gaza and denouncing the capture of Maduro as a kidnapping. Ahead of his departure for Washington, Petro urged supporters to stage street protests in Bogota while he met Trump.

Colombia has long been a cornerstone US partner in Latin America, with three decades of cooperation against drug cartels, rebel groups and rural poverty. That relationship has frayed under Trump’s aggressive regional strategy, which has included unprecedented US military strikes on suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific, killing at least 126 people in 36 known operations.

Relations deteriorated sharply last year when the Trump administration imposed sanctions on Petro and his family over alleged links to the global drug trade, accusations the Colombian government denies. The measures were temporarily waived to allow Petro’s Washington visit, underscoring the fragile nature of the diplomatic opening.

Tensions worsened further after a US military operation last month captured Venezuela’s leader and his wife to face federal drug conspiracy charges. Petro forcefully condemned the move, while Trump warned that Colombia could be next, branding Petro a “sick man” running a cocaine-exporting state.

A subsequent hour-long phone call between the two leaders helped ease tensions and led to Trump extending the White House invitation. Still, caution surrounds the talks, with no traditional arrival photo-op and uncertainty over whether the leaders will appear together before cameras.

Trump’s record of using Oval Office meetings to publicly confront visiting leaders has added to the uncertainty. He has previously rebuked Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa during on-camera encounters, raising questions about how the meeting with Petro may unfold.

Beyond drug policy, the talks are also expected to address broader regional security concerns, including cooperation against organised crime and armed groups operating along Colombia’s borders, as well as long-standing US–Colombia ties that both sides acknowledge remain strategically vital.

The meeting is ongoing , and further developments are expected as discussions continue.