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President Gustavo Petro has announced the launch of preliminary talks with the Clan del Golfo, Colombia’s most notorious drug-trafficking network, in a renewed effort to curb the decades-old cocaine trade that continues to fuel violence across the country.
Speaking Friday in Córdoba, some 180 miles west of Bogotá, Petro confirmed that discussions with the group also known as the Gaitanista Army of Colombia are already underway outside the country. He provided no details about the location or scope of the talks.
The Clan del Golfo, with an estimated 7,500 members, emerged from right-wing paramilitary structures and is widely regarded as one of the largest cocaine producers in the world. The group has long demanded to be recognized as a political entity, a designation that would grant them judicial treatment akin to that offered to former guerrilla and paramilitary factions.
The announcement comes as Petro’s administration pushes a controversial bill in Congress offering criminal groups reduced sentences and protection from extradition in exchange for laying down arms. It is the latest attempt by the leftist leader to negotiate disarmament since taking office in 2022 a goal that has so far eluded him.
Colombia is currently grappling with record-high coca cultivation, with UN figures showing 253,000 hectares dedicated to the crop. The military is carrying out a large-scale offensive aimed at dismantling trafficking operations.
The move toward dialogue coincides with escalating diplomatic tensions between Bogotá and Washington. Relations have soured since U.S. President Donald Trump’s return to office earlier this year, with the White House recalling its ambassador to Colombia last month. Trump has labeled the Clan del Golfo a terrorist organization and has reportedly urged U.S. military readiness to target drug cartels across Latin America, including Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua.
Petro, in turn, has accused the U.S. and “right-wing extremists” of plotting to remove him from power further straining what was once one of Washington’s closest alliances in the region.
Colombia’s certification as a key partner in the U.S.-led war on drugs is due for review in September, putting millions in U.S. aid at stake just as Petro embarks on his high-stakes gamble to bring the nation’s most powerful cartel to the negotiating table.
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