US Designates Colombia as a Non-Compliant Nation in Drug Trafficking Efforts

Sat Oct 18 2025 07:12:45 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

The United States has officially marked Colombia as a country that has 'demonstrably failed' to meet its commitments to combat drug trafficking, stirring tensions between Washington and Bogotá, especially under President Gustavo Petro's government.

Colombia has been designated by the US as a country failing to cooperate in the drug war, marking a notable shift in relations. The US claims that coca production has surged under President Petro's administration, a claim Petro disputes. The designation, however, does not come with an immediate aid cut, despite concerns about drug trafficking and cultivation rising in Colombia.

The United States has officially named Colombia as a country which has demonstrably failed to uphold its obligations to control drug trafficking.

Each year, the U.S. government formally certifies whether several countries are fully cooperating with U.S.-led counternarcotic efforts, and those that do not risk having their U.S. funding cut.

On Monday, the Trump administration stated that cocaine production in Colombia had surged to all-time high records under its left-wing president, Gustavo Petro, which the Colombian leader denied.

However, the U.S. announced it would not cut off the flow of aid to the country, citing U.S. national interests for its decision.

The other countries the U.S. said failed to meet their targets were Afghanistan, Bolivia, Myanmar, and Venezuela. Colombia was added to the list for the first time since 1997.

The move is likely to further sour relations between Petro's government and the Trump administration. President Petro took to social media to respond to the U.S. allegation that during his time in office, the area planted with coca bushes and production of cocaine had reached record levels.

Coca leaves are the key ingredient in cocaine, and Colombia has long been the top producer of the illegal drug. A survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNDOC) found that coca bush cultivation increased by 10% in 2023. The figures for 2024 are due to be released next month.

Petro insisted that the increase in coca cultivation occurred during the tenure of Iván Duque, his predecessor, who governed from 2018 to 2022. According to figures released by the Colombian presidency, a record 1,764 tonnes of cocaine were seized by government security forces between August 2022 and November 2024. Drug seizures have continued at a high level in 2025.

Petro also emphasized the need for demand for cocaine to decrease in the U.S. and Europe to lower coca cultivation.

Conversely, the U.S. firmly attributed the blame to Petro, claiming that his peace negotiations with armed groups, many of whom finance themselves through drug trafficking, hampered the fight against drugs. His failed attempts to seek accommodations with narco-terrorist groups only exacerbated the crisis, the report submitted to U.S. Congress stated.

While the rhetoric from Washington has clearly angered Petro, his government will also be relieved that the decertification did not lead to a cut in U.S. aid flow. Colombia's decertification comes at a time when the Trump administration has made the fight against narco-terrorists a priority.

On Monday, he announced that the U.S. military had destroyed an alleged Venezuelan drug vessel in international waters in the South Caribbean, resulting in three fatalities, as the U.S. claimed to have proof linking the boats to narco-terrorist groups.