Trump’s Venezuela Raid Threat Jolts US–Colombia Alliance
Trump’s threat of unilateral military action against Venezuela through Colombian territory has sent diplomatic shockwaves, tanking markets and reviving fears of U.S. interventionism.
The Phone Call That Shook Bogotá
It was just after midnight on Tuesday when Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Ramírez’s secure line rang. On the other end, according to two senior Colombian officials, was former U.S. President Donald Trump—calling from Mar-a-Lago, not the White House—warning that if Bogotá did not "clean up" its border with Venezuela, he would "send the Marines to do it for you."
From Private Warning to Public Ultimatum
Within 48 hours, Trump’s remarks leaked to U.S. media, igniting a firestorm across Latin America. Speaking to a rally in Miami on Thursday night, Trump doubled down: "Colombia is either with us or against us. If they keep letting Maduro’s thugs hide on their soil, we’ll act—militarily if we have to."
"We will not accept any foreign boots on Colombian soil," Ramírez shot back in a televised address. "Our sovereignty is non-negotiable."
Why the Border Became a Flashpoint
The spat centers on last week’s clandestine U.S. Delta Force incursion into Venezuela’s Amazonas state, targeting what the Pentagon called a "high-value cartel node." The team extracted two American prisoners but left three Colombian nationals dead—civilians, according to Caracas and Bogotá. Trump blames Colombia for "poor intel"; Colombia insists it was never consulted.
- U.S. Southern Command had requested overflight rights; Colombia stalled.
- Trump’s circle views the delay as tacit protection of Maduro.
- Colombia’s military fears becoming a proxy battlefield.
Markets React, Ambassadors Recalled
By Friday morning, the Colombian peso slid 3.4 % against the dollar, its steepest drop since 2020. Bogotá recalled its ambassador to Washington "for consultations," while the U.S. State Department canceled next month’s scheduled joint anti-narcotics drills in the Caribbean.
"Investors hate geopolitical noise," said Luisa Herrera, chief Andes analyst at Bogotá-based Serfinco. "Any hint of U.S. sanctions on Colombian textiles or coffee could push us into recession."
What Happens Next?
Behind the scenes, Senate Foreign Relations Chair Ben Cardin is pressing the White House for a classified briefing. Meanwhile, Trump’s GOP allies want a congressional resolution authorizing "all necessary means" to prevent Venezuela from becoming, in Trump’s words, "a Chinese missile base in America’s backyard."
For ordinary Colombians, the rhetoric is already hitting home. In Cúcuta, a border city dependent on cross-border trade, shopkeeper Marta Ortega, 52, summed up the mood: "First the gangs, now the gringos. We’re caught between two elephants fighting."