Colombian President Declares 'I Shall Take Up Arms Again' if American Forces Launches an Attack.

The US President and Colombia's president have turned up the rhetoric in their verbal conflict, increasing tensions in their relations after American military units targeted Venezuela with the aim of deposing President Nicolás Maduro from power.

"He has drug factories and cocaine factories and his time is running out," Trump added.

Rising Rhetoric coupled with Claims

Addressing the press over the weekend, the US president suggested similar armed intervention towards the South American nation, claiming the nation faces serious problems and governed by a sick man involved in producing the drug and trafficking it to America."

While Colombia is the leading producer of cocaine, no proof exists that President Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is in any way connected to the illicit industry.

A Deteriorating Relationship

This nation was historically a close partner of Washington in the struggle against narcotics trade and received wide political approval in the US capital, yet ties have deteriorated markedly since Trump assumed the presidency.

Its narcotics trade is predominantly run by criminal organizations including the Golf Clan, the ELN guerrilla group and breakaway groups of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), a large contingent of whom disbanded following a historic peace agreement.

Petro's Defiant Response

When asked whether military intervention similar to Venezuela was on the cards against his country, Trump said: "That seems like a good idea to me personally."

The Colombian leader, a former leftist guerrilla who disarmed in the 1990s, rejected Trump's claims. "I am not an illegitimate leader nor am I a drug trafficker," he affirmed.

"The US president speaks without information. End the false accusations," he wrote in a message.

"If US bombs target peasants, they will transform into thousands of guerrillas in the mountains. And should they arrest the nation's leader, which a large part of the population holds in high esteem, they will provoke the ‘jaguar’ of the populace," he admonished.

From Insurgent to Leader

Petro spent some years as a young man participating with the radical M-19 armed organization although reports indicate that he never took part in armed clashes. Upon leaving the group, he participated in creating a new constitution over three decades ago and eventually served as an influential politician. He held the office of mayor of the Colombian capital prior to his election the nation's highest office.

"I made a vow to abstain from using arms again ... but for Colombia I would take up weapons once more," he vowed.

Heightened Measures along with Cross-Political Opposition

Colombia's defense chief stated that the national leader's personal security was strengthened.

A segment of Colombia’s conservative opposition have allied themselves with Trump's stance, but voices from across the ideological divide have denounced the threats of a US attack targeting Colombia.

Bilateral and Economic Pressure

The US revoked Petro’s visa following he called on American soldiers to ignore unlawful commands. Later, in October, the US enacted financial sanctions on Petro, his wife and various key allies.

Concurrently the US was building up its troop levels in the region and targeting alleged narcotics traffickers to put pressure on Venezuela’s Maduro, the US have also conducted strikes on boats in the eastern Pacific region off the Colombian coast.