President Donald Trump accused Colombian President Gustavo Petro of being an "illegal drug dealer" on Sunday, vowing to immediately cut U.S. funding to the South American nation.
The inflammatory remarks came hours before Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that U.S. forces had struck a vessel linked to a Colombian leftist rebel group, killing three individuals described as terrorists.
Trump's post on Truth Social blamed Petro for encouraging mass drug production despite substantial U.S. subsidies.
"Petro, a low rated and very unpopular leader, with a fresh mouth toward America, better close up these killing fields immediately," Trump wrote, "or the United States will close them up for him, and it won't be done nicely."
Hegseth, posting on X, confirmed the operation occurred in international waters within the U.S. Southern Command's area of responsibility.
"These cartels are the Al Qaeda of the Western Hemisphere," Hegseth said.
The latest strike targeted a vessel affiliated with the National Liberation Army, a leftist rebel group accused of narcotics smuggling, though no evidence was publicly provided.
It marked the sixth such U.S. action since early September, with at least 29 people killed across the operations, which the administration maintains target drug traffickers.
In the most recent incident, two crew members died on a semi-submersible vessel loaded with fentanyl and other narcotics, while two survivors from Ecuador and Colombia were repatriated for prosecution rather than detained by U.S. forces.
Trump described the attack as "my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG-CARRYING SUBMARINE that was navigating towards the United States on a well known narcotrafficking transit route."
The U.S. is bolstering its military footprint in the region, deploying guided missile destroyers, F-35 jets, and authorizing CIA covert operations in Venezuela.
Colombia, the top recipient of U.S. aid in Latin America at $377.5 million for 2024, was recently added to a list of nations failing to cooperate in the drug war for the first time in nearly 30 years.
Aid restrictions stem from concerns over Petro's policies on countering drug trafficking.
Relations between Washington and Bogotá have deteriorated sharply since Trump's return to office in January.
Petro previously condemned a September strike in Colombian territorial waters that killed fisherman Alejandro Carranza as "murder" and a sovereignty violation.
"Carranza had no ties to the drug trade and his daily activity was fishing," Petro wrote on X.
"The Colombian boat was adrift and had its distress signal up due to an engine failure."
In response to Trump's latest accusations, Colombia's Foreign Ministry issued a statement condemning the remarks as offensive and a threat to sovereignty.
"These accusations represent an extremely serious act and undermine the dignity of the president of Colombians," the ministry said.
Petro, seeking international support, posted on X: "I respect the history, culture, and people of the USA. They are not my enemies, nor do I feel them as such."
He added: "The problem is with Trump, not with the USA."
Legal experts, human rights activists, and Democratic lawmakers have raised alarms over the strikes' adherence to international law, with Amnesty International labeling them "murder on the high seas."
The White House and State Department offered no immediate additional details on the funding cuts or operations.