Did US assist in plotting assassination of Colombian leftist president?

The United States and Colombia have both recalled their top diplomats amid rapidly deteriorating relations, triggered by allegations of a plot to oust Colombia’s left-wing President Gustavo Petro.

The diplomatic standoff began when Washington recalled its chargé d’affaires, John McNamara, last week. US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce stated the move came “following baseless and reprehensible statements from the highest levels of the government of Colombia,” though she did not specify what those statements were. Bruce added that the US “is pursuing other measures to make clear our deep concern over the current state of our bilateral relationship,” without providing further details.

Shortly after, President Petro responded by announcing he would recall Colombia’s ambassador to Washington, Daniel Garcia-Peña. “Ambassador Daniel Garcia-Pena must come to inform us of the development of the bilateral agenda,” Petro wrote on X, adding that key topics include harnessing South America’s “great potential for clean energy” and fighting “drug lords and their international finances.”

The diplomatic dispute follows the sudden resignation of Colombia’s foreign minister, Laura Sarabia, last week. Sarabia, who had also served as Petro’s chief of staff, posted on X: “In recent days, decisions have been made that I do not agree with and that, out of personal integrity and institutional respect, I cannot support.”

Relations between the two countries, historically close under decades of right-wing leadership in Colombia, have frayed significantly since Petro became president in 2022. Tensions worsened this week when Colombian prosecutors launched an investigation into an alleged plot to overthrow Petro — a conspiracy said to involve Colombian and American political figures. The probe follows the publication of secretly recorded audio by Spanish newspaper El País, implicating Álvaro Leyva, a former foreign minister and once-trusted ally of Petro.

According to the El País report, Leyva suggested a plan to remove Petro from power by building “international pressure” with backing from Republican lawmakers in the United States. Leyva is heard in the recordings referring to Vice President Francia Márquez as a potential successor and describing Petro as an “erratic” leader allegedly suffering from “serious drug addiction problems.” He also proposes a “grand national agreement” to include armed groups such as the ELN and the Gulf Clan, along with business and political figures. “We have to get rid of that guy. (…) This country is heading for the abyss,” Leyva reportedly says in the recordings.

Leyva allegedly travelled to the US two months ago to court support from Republican leaders, including Senator Marco Rubio and Representative Mario Díaz-Balart, according to testimonies from sources close to those lawmakers.

“This is nothing more than a conspiracy with drug traffickers and apparently, the Colombian and American extreme right,” Petro said earlier this week.

The row is the latest in a series of clashes. In January, the US temporarily suspended consular services after Petro refused to allow American military planes to repatriate Colombian migrants. Petro criticized the US over the treatment of the migrants, accusing it of placing them in “shackles and handcuffs” like criminals.

By Nazrin Sadigova