Is the U.S. involved in plot to remove Colombia’s Petro?

The South American country of Colombia has had a long history of political violence, attempted and successful political assassinations and deeply embedded corruption.

At one time, the country was known pejoratively as the “cocaine capital of the world,” and the illicit white powder still remains a critical sector of the Colombian economy. It has also been labelled the “murder capital of the world,” though both guerrilla and murderous paramilitary activities have subsided in recent years.

Still, deadly drug cartels, a powerful military and an influential business community have all played significant roles in shaping Colombian democratic politics in the last few decades. One should also not forget the willingness of official Washington to interfere in Colombian political, economic and security affairs.

So, I’m not shocked to hear about the latest episode on Colombia’s precarious political situation — that is, the attempted coup d’état (supposedly involving drug cartels and armed criminal syndicates) against the country’s leftist president, and former guerrilla member, Gustavo Petro. What we don’t know, though, is the precise nature of the role, if there was any, of U.S. President Donald Trump’s involvement in the scheme to remove Petro.

According to the respected Spanish newspaper El País, it was former Colombian foreign minister Álvaro Leyva who actually plotted the overthrow of the Petro government. Evidently, audio recordings of Leyva reveal that he had sought support from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to somehow use “international pressure” to get Petro to step aside.

There are also references on the recordings that Leyva spoke with U.S. Republican Party politicians (including members of Congress from Florida) and political operatives. How close any of these individuals are to Trump’s inner circle is anyone’s guess — though Trump’s team is in complete denial mode.

It is no secret that Trump wouldn’t be saddened by the abrupt removal of the left-leaning Petro. Recall that it was Petro who initially refused to accept Colombian deportees from the U.S. back in January. Of course, he quickly had a change of heart when Trump threatened to impose stiff tariffs on Colombian imports and visa restrictions on its citizens.

In addition to its ideological aversion to Petro, the Trump White House has also differed sharply with the Colombian government on a wide array of policy matters (such as China, migration and Israel). But it has mostly parted company with Petro on how best to combat the drug trade in Colombia (a key supplier of cocaine to the U.S.).

As for the Leyva coup plan itself, it was intended to unfold rapidly so as to replace Petro with Vice-President Francia Márquez. However, she has been quick to deny any involvement in the plot. Still, her relationship with Petro is no doubt dysfunctional (and has been for months) and thus her days in office are likely numbered.

In an interview with El País, Petro said that “Leyva has betrayed me in the worst way.” He subsequently told reporters in Spain the following: “The scheme proposed by Álvaro Leyva is nothing but a conspiracy with drug trafficking and the far-right, apparently Colombian and American, to overthrow the President of change in Colombia.”

It is important to note that Leyva was fired as Petro’s foreign minister in 2024 over allegations of misconduct over a contract involving government passports. Leyva has since disparaged Petro as a polarizing figure (who refused to hire his son) and said that he had evidence that Petro had participated in erratic governmental decision-making, sought to do an end-run around the Colombian Congress and even alleged that he has a serious drug addiction.

It is worth remembering that Colombia is slated to hold presidential elections in May 2026, which Petro is certain to seek re-election. Incidentally, all of the opposition presidential candidates have rallied around Petro and called for Leyva to come clean with his involvement in the sordid scheme.

This is not the first time, though, that Petro has raised the issue of coup-plotters and his unlawful removal from power. He has been saying it from the moment that he was inaugurated in August 2022 — even claiming that he had a huge target on his back.

There needs to be more light shed on what, if any, discussions took place between Leyva and members of the Trump administration.

Call me a cynic, but this would not be the first time that the U.S. tried to insert itself covertly into the politics of governmental destabilization in Latin America. And it won’t be the last.

Peter McKenna is professor of political science at the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown.