WashingtonAfter a relationship full of clashes over the past year, the meeting between Colombian President Gustavo Petro and Donald Trump at the White House has concluded satisfactorily for both sides. The conversation, which was held behind closed doors and lasted two hours, seems to have gone so well that the Colombian took home two souvenirs from his visit: a photograph with Trump signed by the president and a copy of his book Trump: The art of the dealwith dedication included. “You’re great,” says the signature. Both images have been shared by Petro himself on the networks as proof of the good understanding lived in the Oval Office. Which has been confirmed by Trump, who has also said that the conversation “went very well”. The face-to-face represents a 180-degree turn in the tense relations between Bogotá and Washington.
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The reason for all this good harmony, which has surprised many, has been explained later. In the subsequent press conference, the Colombian president and former anti-imperialist guerrilla has explained that he has offered Trump help in the economic reactivation of Venezuela. A plan in which the Colombian state oil company Ecopetrol could participate, as he has hinted, but he did not want to give details of how he would do it. “We have seen how to reactivate Venezuela with the help of Colombia”, explained Petro, who assures that in the previous months he had already had energy contacts with Venezuela and that, after capturing Nicolás Maduro, “the United States saw the immediate possibility of lifting sanctions in the West [la zona fronterera entre Colòmbia i Veneçuela] and opens up the possibilities for Ecopetrol to be the core company of this reactivation”.
Petro, in a simile with the work that plumbers do to fix the pipes, has proposed that this “reactivation” contemplates making use of the clean electrical energy produced in Colombia, as well as the restoration of gas pipelines, oil pipelines and electrical connections already built. “It is not an issue of how Ecopetrol enters Venezuela, that is a later issue. […] What it’s about is how the border is articulated, which is tying some pipes, it’s like in your house with the plumber; that the pipes are closed and the gas passes, or relatively fine oil and is refined in our country or it can go to a port. And the three countries must win: Venezuela, Colombia and wherever this type of merchandise is sold. And in this we say that the proposals of the United States are on the table”, explained Petro, who assures that they have been on the tables of both the Colombian Ecopetrol and the Venezuelan companies for years.
The Colombian leader has linked this economic reactivation plan as a complement to his strategy to fight drug trafficking. “The more the Colombian northeast and the Venezuelan west are economically reactivated, the less drug trafficking.”
Previously, in an interview with Radio Caracol, Petro had given the meeting with the president a 9 out of 10. “The meeting takes place at a time when I think we have fears and expectations about the future, and that’s what the meeting was about,” he explained to the announcer. When asked if his position with the United States will change, Petro emphasized: “We must manage to speak the truth, that there is no misinformation and that we can agree on the paths.”
The president did not enjoy the usual reception given to heads of state with the guard of honor in the north portico of the White House. Being an unofficial visit, he entered through the West Gate, which connects the West Wing of the Presidential Residence to the Eisenhower Building. The only other leader to use this access route under Trump’s second term was Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa during his visit last year.
But despite having had a watered-down reception, the Colombian has praised the journey that has been made for him on the presidential walk of fame. “This knowledge has allowed me to establish a good relationship. I did not know the White House; now I see it more beautiful and I told [a Trump] who is a good designer,” explained the Colombian. Since his return to power, Trump has been in charge of redecorating the Oval Office and all the corners of the emblematic building with a Versailles aesthetic that contrasts with the classic austere style. This is another reflection of the magnate’s absolutist aspirations, where the culminating work will be the construction of the ballroom.
Before the meeting, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said that Trump “was in a very positive mood right before the meeting and was very much looking forward to having a conversation with President Petro.” From the images that have been published in the press about the meeting, and the Colombian’s subsequent publications on the networks, it seems that the two delegations have shared a relaxed meeting.
History of brawls
Recent spats between the two leaders amid Trump’s military campaign to reissue his backyard doctrine in Latin America did not bode well for such a friendly meeting. In fact, since the Republican returned to power, Petro has wanted to establish himself as the main opponent of Washington’s imperialist aspirations. The Colombian was one of the first to raise his voice against Trump for the bombings against the alleged drug cartels, but he has recently calmed down following the kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro. Bogotá has always been listed as Trump’s next target after Caracas. As he did with the deposed Chavista president, the US president has also accused Petro of being an “illegal drug leader”, although he has not provided evidence. In January, already emboldened by the military intervention in Venezuela, he hinted at the possibility of similar action against Colombia.
Shortly after these threats, Petro called Trump to defuse the situation. This conversation already set the tone for what happened in the White House this Tuesday. The Colombian president described the 55-minute conversation as “friendly” and “historic”. Even then, Petro assured that they mainly talked about how to combat drug trafficking from Colombia. At this Tuesday’s meeting, the main topic was also supposed to be the fight against drug trafficking. Petro, with May’s presidential elections on the horizon, is betting on confiscation, demand reduction and alternative economic projects for small coca leaf producers. The United States insists on crop eradication and supply control.
