US President Donald Trump yesterday called Colombian President Gustavo Petro an "illegal drug leader" and said the United States would cease "large scale payments and subsidies" to the South American nation.

"The purpose of this drug production is the sale of massive amounts of product into the United States, causing death, destruction, and havoc," he said in a Truth Social post.

The Colombian embassy in Washington, DC, did not respond to a request for comment.

Relations between Bogota and Washington have frayed since Trump returned to office. Last month the US revoked Petro's visa after he joined a pro-Palestinian demonstration in New York.

In September, Trump designated countries such as Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma, Colombia and Venezuela among those the United States believes to have "failed demonstrably" in upholding counternarcotics agreements during the past year.