The President of the Republic of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, responded this Friday to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which included the Colombian president, his wife Verónica Alcocer, and their son, Nicolás Fernando Petro, on the list of sanctions imposed by the United States government.
Petro's response was released on his official social media account X where he stated that "indeed, Bernie Moreno's threat was fulfilled, my wife, my children, and I have entered the OFAC list. My lawyer in my defense will be Dany Kovalik from the United States."
"Fighting drug trafficking effectively for decades brings me this measure from the government of the society we helped so much to stop its cocaine use. Quite a paradox, but not one step back and never on our knees," Petro said on the social network.
The U.S. Treasury Department imposed financial sanctions on Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Friday, whom U.S. President Donald Trump accused of being a "drug trafficking kingpin."
According to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, President Petro has allegedly "boosted cocaine production" in Colombia, adding that Petro has "allowed drug cartels to flourish and has refused to stop this activity."
Last week, Trump accused the Colombian president of being a "drug trafficking kingpin" and suspended financial aid to Colombia, a country he removed from the list of nations cooperating in the fight against drug trafficking in September.
In this regard, the Colombian President Gustavo Petro, stated this Sunday, October 19, that the US president, Donald Trump, "is deceived" when he considers him "a drug trafficking leader," because he said that what he has done throughout his career is precisely denounce drug mafias.
"Trump is deceived by his lodges and advisors. The main enemy that drug trafficking had in Colombia was the one who discovered its relations with the political power of Colombia in the 21st century. That was me. I recommend that Trump read Colombia well and determine which side the narcos are on and which side the Democrats are on," Petro wrote in X after Trump announced that he was cutting off financial aid to Colombia due to its inaction in the fight against drug trafficking.
