The President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, stated that the President of the United States, Donald Trump, should replace the marijuana prohibition policy with a regulatory framework. The measure would allow for adult use and international cannabis exports.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) last week, Colombian President Gustavo Petro addressed broader drug policy issues. The statement came amid a dispute between the two leaders over Trump administration's military attacks on boats allegedly trafficking narcotics.

"Colombia actually provides the money and deaths in the fight, while the US provides the consumption," Petro said, according to a translation. "Consumption in the US and the growing consumption in Europe are responsible for 300,000 murders in Colombia and a million deaths in Latin America."

But he also said that he proposed to Trump "the opposite" of what the government is currently doing. The proposal includes removing tariffs on Colombian agricultural products and legalizing the "export of cannabis" as "any product," for example.

Petro stated that the reform could be justified by the United Nations' decision to reclassify cannabis under international treaties to which both countries are signatories.

According to Petro, Trump should also "strengthen the policy of preventing consumption in the US."

"[Trump should] scientifically study whether prohibition is necessary, or rather, if responsible and state-regulated consumption should build a more effective treaty for the pursuit of capital and assets of drug traffickers worldwide," said the Colombian President, as initially reported by High Times.

Tension between Gustavo Petro and Trump escalates

Last week, Trump called Petro the "leader of illegal drug trafficking." Additionally, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury sanctioned the Colombian President, members of his family, and his advisors for alleged involvement in drug trafficking.

Trump, on the other hand, has not supported federal legalization, although he stated in late August that a decision on a pending proposal to reclassify marijuana would be made in a few weeks. His recent actions regarding drug policy have focused on cartels, with controversial extrajudicial attacks on boats in international waters allegedly transporting drugs to the US.

With information from Marijuana Moment