Venezuela and Colombia “united” against drug trafficking, under pressure from Trump
As tensions continue to mount between Washington and Caracas, the Colombian president has ordered the deployment of additional troops to the border with Venezuela, the world's largest coca-coa reservoir, ostensibly to neutralize the mafia forces that rule there. In reality, Petro likely saw this as an opportunity to please Donald Trump, according to regional press reports.
But what is Gustavo Petro playing at? This is the question being asked in Colombia after the president ordered the deployment of additional troops to the border with Venezuela, as tensions between Caracas and Washington reach new heights.
I did it "to be able to reduce the mafia forces as much as possible" in the Catatumbo region, which has the largest concentration of coca fields in the world, he said on X.
A decision immediately welcomed by his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolás Maduro, for whom “Venezuela and Colombia are united for peace, because we protect, monitor and preserve our lands ourselves,” reports Venezuela News .
Now, more than 25,500 troops – 10,500 Colombians and 15,000 Venezuelans – patrol along this shared border. “But why do it now,” asks Colombian opposition senator Paloma Valencia, when we know that armed groups, such as the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas or the FARC dissidents, have reigned supreme there for some time?
Out of opportunism, responds the Argentinian media Infobae . Petro seems to want on the one hand to seize the opportunity to weaken these armed groups, and on the other to please Washington, with whom he
Take advantage of the special digital offer to access all of our content without limits.
Courrier International
