Colombian President Gustavo Petro claimed on Monday that an explosive device was “dropped from an aircraft” near the border with Ecuador, escalating tensions amid ongoing tariff and trade disputes. Petro said he requested Trump’s intervention to avert conflict, emphasizing, “We don’t want to go to war.”

Ecuador denied the allegations. President Daniel Noboa responded on social media, writing, “President Petro, your statements are false. We are acting in our territory, not yours.”

The situation follows recent U.S.-backed operations in the region. In March, U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) conducted joint strikes with Ecuador on narco-terrorist targets, calling the operation a “powerful example” of regional cooperation against drug cartels. Ecuador’s Interior Minister John Reimberg said Sunday that 35,000 police officers were deployed nationwide, declaring, “We’re at war.”

President Trump previously encouraged Latin American nations at the Summit of the Americas on March 7 to use military force against cartels, stating, “We’ll help you.” Petro’s office noted that he was not invited to the summit, which White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt attributed to a lack of cooperation from the Colombian government. Petro later posted that Trump apologized for the “prior inconvenience” and reiterated that he is “always welcome in the United States.”

During his second administration, Petro designated multiple drug cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, enabling SOUTHCOM strikes against alleged narco-terrorist boats in the Caribbean in September 2025.