After months of trading insults, Donald Trump and Colombian President Gustavo Petro met at the White House on Thursday, ending with pleasantries, autographs and a MAGA cap. The closed-door meeting, with no press access, was highly anticipated after the two leaders had exchanged hostile remarks, with Trump suggesting Petro could face the same fate as former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro.
Despite the tension, images shared by both governments showed a cordial atmosphere. Petro posted a photo of a signed copy of Trump's book The Art of the Deal with the inscription 'You are great', joking that he did not understand English. He also shared a photo from Trump bearing the message: 'Gustavo, a great honour. I love Colombia.' Petro was later photographed leaving the White House wearing a red 'Make America Great Again' cap.
At a press conference, Trump said they had reached an agreement on drug trafficking, despite Colombia being the world's largest cocaine producer. 'We got along very well. He and I weren't exactly the best of friends, but I wasn't insulted,' Trump said. Petro praised Trump as a 'frank gringo', adding that 'frankness comes first'. Trump described the meeting as 'very productive' and 'fantastic', and said they would continue working on sanctions.
However, there was no immediate announcement on Petro's removal from the US 'Clinton list' over alleged involvement in the global illicit drug trade. Petro denied discussing the matter, but noted it stemmed from his pro-Palestinian comments at the UN. He stressed that his government had seized more cocaine than any other, and told Trump they must target criminal bosses living in Dubai, Madrid and Miami, whose names he provided.
Before the meeting, Colombia extradited a top drug gang leader, Andrés Felipe Marín Silva, to the US. Defence Minister Pedro Sánchez said this demonstrated Colombia's reliability as a partner. The meeting marked a dramatic shift in relations between the two leaders, who had previously traded insults such as 'sick man' and 'accomplice to genocide'.
