Nov. 12 (UPI) — Colombian President Gustavo Petro has ordered the South American nation’s security authorities to cease sharing intelligence with the United States over the Trump administration’s continued attacks on vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean.
“An order is given to all levels of intelligence within the public security forces to suspend the sending of communications and other dealings with U.S. security agencies,” Petro said in the statement on X.
“This measure will remain in effect as long as the missile attacks on boats in the Caribbean continue.”
At least 75 people have been killed in 19 known U.S. military attacks targeting boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific since Sept. 2. The Trump administration accuses the vessels of shipping narcotics for drug cartels that it has designated as terrorist organizations.
The attacks have drawn both domestic and international criticism and allegations of potential war crimes and extrajudicial killings perpetrated by the United States. Petro has also accused Trump of murder, saying one of the attacks in mid-September killed a fisherman named Alejandro Carranza.
The Trump administration has defended the strikes as necessary to protect Americans from the drugs the boats are allegedly bringing into the United States. President Donald Trump has also seemingly rejected the notion of seeking congressional approval for the strikes, stating last month that “I think we are just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country.”
The announcement Tuesday came on the heels of Petro recalling Colombia’s ambassador to Washington for consultations in response to a photo released by the White House on Oct. 21 in which Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair is seen holding a folder that contains photos of Petro and Venezuela’s authoritarian president, Nicolas Maduro, in prison jumpsuits.
The actions are expected to further strain relations between the two allies, which have become fraught during the Trump administration. Petro has been a critic of the American leader’s hardline immigration and drug enforcement policies, and Trump has accused Petro of not doing enough to curb the manufacturing of drugs in the South American nation.
Trump has imposed sanctions on Petro and his immediate family members on accusations that Petro is permitting drug cartels to conduct their business without impediment.
Petro has rejected the accusations and, in turn, accused the Trump administration of lying. His administration maintains drug production is declining under Petro’s tenure.
“The fight against drugs must be subordinated to the human rights of the Caribbean people,” Petro said Tuesday.