Gustavo Petro/ X
President Donald Trump lauded his meeting with Colombian counterpart Gustavo Petro as tensions between the two thaw.
Speaking to The Hill's Julia Manchester, Trump said the two had a "very good meeting."
"He and I weren't exactly the best of friends, but I wasn't insulted because I never met him. I didn't know at all. And we got along very well. And we are we're working on that. We're working on some other things too, including sanctions," Trump added.
It wasn't clear whether he was referring to the personal sanctions the U.S. imposed on Petro last year over alleged connections with cartels.
NEW: President Trump tells me he had “a very good meeting” w/ Colombian President Petro“He and I weren't exactly the best of friends, but I wasn't insulted because I never met him. I didn't know at all. And we got along very well. And we are we're working on that. We're working…
— Julia Manchester (@JuliaManch) February 3, 2026
Petro also celebrated the outcome of the meeting, posting several pictures of the two on social media. One featured a binder with a signed letter from Trump reading "Gustavo - a great honor. I love Colombia," along with a picture of the two shaking hands at the Oval Office.
He also posted a black and white photo of the two sitting down and one featuring a signed copy of Trump's book "The Art of the Deal." "What did Trump mean here? I don't understand English a lot," Petro said in the publication. The signed copy reads "You are great," above Trump's signature.
In another publication Petro said he proposed Trump to make a change to his MAGA slogan: "Put an 'S' to America. It seems like he liked it. Americas," he noted before publishing a photo of the typical hat with an S added with marker along with his signature.
Le propuse a Donald Trump un cambio en la moda: ponerle una "S" a América.Parece que le gustó. Américas. pic.twitter.com/hdJbENRHZh
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) February 3, 2026
It is a departure from the tone the two heads of state had before the meeting. On Monday, Trump mocked Petro after being asked what he would want to hear from the South American president terms of drug-trafficking and relations with Venezuela, especially considering how critical he has been of the U.S.
"He has been very nice over the last month or two. He was certainly critical before that. But somehow after the Venezuelan raid he became very nice," Trump said, in reference to the operation that captured authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro.
Tensions had reached a tipping point in early January after the Maduro raid, with Petro saying he would be willing to take up arms to fight the U.S. and Trump warning he could be the next to be captured.
The two finally had a conversation to defuse tensions, with reports noting that the Colombian government made several security-related concessions.
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Petro Says He Proposed Trump To Change The 'A' In His MAGA Slogan To 'Americas': 'Seems He Liked It'
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Tags: Donald Trump, Gustavo Petro, Colombia, United States
