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Donald Trump has said he will meet Colombia’s leftwing President Gustavo Petro, just days after the US president had threatened military strikes on the South American country.
Trump spoke to Petro, who he has previously accused of being a drug trafficker, on Wednesday evening, describing the call as a “great honor” in a post on Truth Social. Petro explained “the situation of drugs and other disagreements that we have had”, Trump wrote.
“I appreciated his call and tone, and look forward to meeting him in the near future,” Trump said, adding that US secretary of state Marco Rubio would co-ordinate the meeting with Colombia’s foreign minister.
“The meeting will take place in the White House in Washington, D.C,” Trump said, without specifying a date.
The détente represents a staggering about-face between the leaders, who have been at loggerheads since Trump’s return to the Oval Office a year ago.
They spoke minutes before Petro appeared at an anti-US rally in Bogotá. Speaking from the stage, Petro, a former guerrilla member, said he had changed his planned remarks.
“I had a tougher speech prepared,” he told the thousands gathered in Bogotá’s central Plaza Bolívar. Petro blamed rightwing Colombian politicians for having “tricked Trump” over his alleged involvement in drug trafficking, adding that “Trump is no fool”. He has denied the allegations.
In September, Petro had his US visa revoked after he called on American soldiers to “disobey” Trump at a pro-Palestinian rally in New York.
That same month, Washington said Colombia was no longer an ally in the war on drugs, though it kept long-standing security co-operation agreements in place. Colombia is the world’s largest cocaine producer.
The Trump administration also levied personal sanctions on Petro and his wife in October, accusing the Colombian leader of being a drug trafficker.
Relations between the traditional allies soured further following the brazen arrest and extraction of Venezuela’s authoritarian leader Nicolás Maduro in Caracas on Saturday, which Petro described as a “kidnapping”.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, Trump threatened military action against Colombia, which he said was “very sick too” and “run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States”.
Petro responded by saying he would be willing to “take up arms again” if Colombia were attacked, in reference to his time as a member of the now-defunct M-19 guerrilla group decades ago.
Tensions appeared to have eased on Wednesday, with the Colombian embassy in Washington welcoming “the constructive tone” of the exchange.
The US embassy in Bogotá had earlier warned Americans about nationwide rallies, including the one in the capital, advising citizens to “avoid large protests as they have the potential to turn violent”.
At the rally, crowds chanted “damned gringos” and carried placards calling Trump an “imperialist”. Some attendees burned a US flag.