Trump says phone call with Colombia’s Gustavo Petro was a 'Great Honor'

President Trump said on social media that it was a "Great Honor" to speak by phone with Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, who he said had "called to explain the situation of drugs and other disagreements that we have had."

The two leaders spoke for about an hour late Wednesday afternoon in a call facilitated by the U.S. Embassy in Colombia, the Colombian presidency said. A U.S. official also said the call lasted about an hour, which the official called unusually long for Mr. Trump; the Colombian Foreign Ministry described it as a "good meeting." The presidency said the leaders spoke through translators.

The exchange marked an about-face from comments by Mr. Trump only days earlier, when he referred to Mr. Petro as "sick" and said military action against Venezuela’s neighbor "sounds good." After those remarks, Mr. Petro posted a storm of messages on social media and called for Colombians to demonstrate across the country on Wednesday afternoon, roughly at the same time as the call.

Mr. Trump said a White House meeting with Mr. Petro was being arranged by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Colombia’s foreign minister, and that he was looking forward to it. The State Department revoked Mr. Petro’s visa last fall after he called for American soldiers to disobey Mr. Trump and "not to point their guns at humanity" during a pro-Palestinian rally in New York; the department cited "his reckless and incendiary actions."

Key Topics

World, Donald Trump, Gustavo Petro, Colombia, Marco Rubio, State Department