The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro. Photo: Andrea Puentes/Presidency of Colombia.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro demanded that US authorities provide information about Colombian citizens killed when US naval forces blew up a boat in the Caribbean—a claim for which Washington demanded a public retraction.
“The White House should give us the information on the people who have died from US missiles, so that we can see if my information is baseless,” President Petro stated on Wednesday, October 8.
The statement came after an unidentified US official sent the following message to Colombian journalist Juan Camilo Merlano: “The United States looks forward to President Petro publicly retracting his baseless and reprehensible statement so that we can return to a productive dialogue on building a strong and prosperous future for the people of the United States and Colombia.” The journalist posted the message on social media.
Commenting on the post, the Colombian president emphasized that there were indications the latest vessel bombed by US forces in international waters of the Caribbean Sea “was Colombian, with Colombian citizens on board.” He added that “a new war zone has opened up: the Caribbean” and that “it is not a war on drug trafficking,” but rather “a war for oil,” which “must be stopped by the world. The aggression is against all of Latin America and the Caribbean.”
Petro’s criticisms
The Colombian president has openly questioned the effectiveness of Washington’s anti-drug policy in the region, arguing that it criminalizes peasants who grow illicit crops and small-time traffickers, while ignoring measures to curb demand in the US and leaving money-laundering structures and major drug lords untouched.
His comments took on a more stringent tone after the US military deployment in the Caribbean Sea—presented as an action against cartels—with Venezuela singled out as the main target, even though specialized reports emphasize that Venezuela’s role in the illicit drug trade to North America is marginal at best.
President Petro Confirms that Latest Boat Destroyed by US in Caribbean Was Colombian
Thus, Petro has joined voices questioning the US narrative about the “Cartel de los Soles,” a purported drug-trafficking organization that the US claims is led by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
“The Cartel de los Soles does not exist. It is a fiction created by the far right to overthrow governments that do not obey them,” Petro said. “The transit of Colombian cocaine through Venezuela is controlled by the ‘Drug Trafficking Board,’ and its kingpins live in Europe and the Middle East.”
Similarly, he has condemned the bombing of small vessels in Caribbean waters, arguing that their crews were extrajudicially executed in violation of international law and protocols for intercepting suspected “go-fast boats.”
US aggression in the Caribbean
In August, some mainstream media reported on a US military deployment in the southern Caribbean, ostensibly to combat drug cartels. At the same time, US Attorney General Pam Bondi raised the reward $50 million for information leading to Nicolás Maduro’s arrest on the unsubstantiated accusation of leading a “drug trafficking cartel.”
So far, Washington claims to have bombed five vessels in the Caribbean, resulting in at least 21 fatalities. Colombia has labeled these deaths as “murders.” Meanwhile, international bodies, such as the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, have stated that “people should not die for using, selling, or consuming drugs.”
Following the US military deployment, foreign ministers from blocs such as the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) have called for respect for the region’s status as a zone of peace.
President Maduro maintains that his country is the victim of a multifront war orchestrated by the US to bring about “regime change.”
(RT)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/SC/SH
