LatinNews Daily - 20 October 2025

*US President Donald Trump has announced a halt to US aid to Colombia, in response to criticism from President Gustavo Petro of recent US military strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean Sea. Writing on social media, Trump claimed that Petro “is an illegal drug leader strongly encouraging the massive production of drugs, in big and small fields, all over Colombia”. Trump said that “Petro does nothing to stop it, despite large scale payments and subsidies from the USA that are nothing more than a long term rip off of America”. He added that “as of today, these payments, or any other form of payment, will no longer be made to Colombia”. Trump later told reporters that he would announce a new tariff rate for Colombia today (20 October) and said that “we’re going to drop all money that we’re giving to them,” describing the country as a “drug manufacturing machine”. Bilateral tensions over drug production had already soared in recent weeks, with the US decertifying Colombia as a counter-narcotics ally in September, which was expected to result in deep cuts to aid, including security cooperation. Following that announcement, however, the US State Department announced that a waiver had been issued to ensure that counter-narcotics cooperation would continue.

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