COLOMBIA’S President Gustavo Petro warned on Tuesday that any United States attacks on Latin America will be considered “a declaration of war.”

Writing on X Mr Petro warned: “An attack on our sovereignty would mean a declaration of war. Don’t destroy two centuries of diplomatic relations.”

Mr Petro went on to invite US President Donald Trump to his country to see how Bogota is fighting the war on drugs.

The remarks follow a threat by Mr Trump on Tuesday that the US would soon begin launching attacks on ground targets in Latin America to fight drug trafficking.

In recent days there have been at least 21 air attacks against alleged drug boats in the international waters of the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, killing at least 83 people.

In a September 2 attack, Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth is facing accusations that he directly ordered a secondary strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean.

The White House said on Monday that the order to carry out the strike was given by navy Vice-Admiral Frank “Mitch” Bradley.

Mr Hegseth defended his role on Tuesday, citing the “fog of war” as the reason for his not seeing any survivors in the water when the order was given.