US sanctions not aimed at harming Colombian people, economy, says Rubio

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday that the U.S. does not want to harm Colombia’s people and its economy with sanctions imposed on President Gustavo Petro.

Washington on Friday blacklisted Petro and his family, accusing him of appeasing and emboldening “narco terrorists.”

Rubio, speaking to reporters en route from Israel to Qatar, said the United States has a “strong and enduring” relationship with the Colombian people and many of the Latin American country’s institutions, especially the security forces.

The U.S. military has ratcheted up activity in the southern Caribbean, striking vessels in international waters that it has alleged without evidence are carrying drugs. President Donald Trump this week called Petro an "illegal drug leader" after the leftist president accused the U.S. of committing "murder" with the strikes.

“This is not a U.S.-versus-Colombia thing," Rubio said, referring to sanctions on Petro. He said the Trump administration was reacting to a foreign leader who it believed had become hostile, "But we separate that from (the people of) Colombia. That’s why you don’t see tariff action. That’s why we don’t want to harm the Colombian economy.”