Directly addressing Mr. Trump, Mr. Petro also questioned whether the American president was trying to topple him.
“You don’t like our freedom, fine,” Mr. Petro said. “I do not shake hands with white enslavers.”
The feud reflects how Mr. Trump is making an example out of Colombia as countries around the world grapple with how to prepare for the mass deportations of unauthorized immigrants that he has promised.
“This looks like a pretty bold and daring escalation on both sides,” said Will Freeman, a fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, citing Colombia’s economic reliance on the United States, which is still the South American country’s largest trading partner even as China has been making inroads.
-“But equally, for Trump to threaten Colombia this way is pretty bold itself,” Mr. Freeman added. “That’s because Colombia remains historically the longest standing, the deepest, strategic ally in the region.”
Mr. Trump signed an executive order last week authorizing the U.S. military to assist in securing the border, and the Department of Defense said it would use military aircraft to deport people held in U.S. custody along the southern border.
