US Adds Colombia to List of Countries Failing to Combat Drug Trafficking

‘The failure of Colombia to meet its drug control obligations over the past year rests solely with its political leadership,’ Trump said.

Laundry dries on a clothesline in the middle of a coca field on a hillside of the Micay Canyon, Colombia, on Aug. 13, 2024. Fernando Vergara, AP

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sept. 15 added Colombia to a list of countries he says are not cooperating in the effort to tackle drugs, the first time since 1997 that the South American country has been included.

In a presidential determination, which will be sent to Congress, Trump said, “In Colombia, coca cultivation and cocaine production have surged to all-time records under President Gustavo Petro, and his failed attempts to seek accommodations with narco-terrorist groups only exacerbated the crisis.”