\n<\/p>\n
Medellin, Colombia \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>The shock removal of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro by the United States military has triggered alarm in bordering Colombia, where analysts warn of the possibility of far-reaching repercussions.<\/p>\n The Colombian government condemned Washington\u2019s early Saturday morning attacks on Venezuela \u2013 which included strikes on military targets and Maduro\u2019s capture \u2013 and announced plans to fortify its 2,219-kilometre (1,378-mile) eastern land border, a historic hotbed of rebellion and cocaine production.<\/p>\n list of 3 items<\/span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n Security analysts also say Maduro\u2019s deposition could aggravate an already deteriorating security situation in Colombia, while refugee advocacy groups warn the country would bear the brunt of possible migration waves triggered by the fallout from the intervention.<\/p>\n The Colombian government held an emergency national security meeting at 3am (09:00GMT), according to President Gustavo Petro.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Colombian government condemns the attack on the sovereignty of Venezuela and Latin America,\u201d wrote the president in an X post, announcing the mobilisation of state forces to secure the border.<\/p>\n The National Liberation Army (ELN), a left-wing group and the largest remaining rebel force in the country, have been vocal as recently as December in its preparations to defend the country against \u201cimperialist intervention\u201d.<\/p>\n Security analysts say the primary national security risk to Colombia following the attacks stems from ELN, which controls nearly the entire border with Venezuela.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there is a high risk now that the ELN will consider retaliation, including here in Colombia, against Western targets,\u201d said Elizabeth Dickinson, deputy director for Latin America at Crisis Group International.<\/p>\n The rebel group is heavily involved in cocaine trafficking and operates on both sides of the border; it has benefited from ties with the Maduro government, and US intervention threatens the group\u2019s transnational operations, according to analysts.<\/p>\n The ELN, which positions itself as a bastion against US imperialism in the region, had already stepped up violence in response to the White House\u2019s threats against Colombia and Venezuela. In December, it ordered Colombians to stay home and bombed state installations across the country, an action it described as a response to US aggression.<\/p>\n The Colombian government has ramped up security measures in anticipation of possible retaliatory action by the ELN following Maduro\u2019s removal.<\/p>\n \u201cAll capabilities of the security forces have been activated to protect the population, strategic assets, embassies, military and police units, among others, as well as to prevent any attempted terrorist action by transnational criminal organisations, such as the ELN cartel,\u201d read a statement on Saturday morning issued by Colombia\u2019s Ministry of Defence.<\/p>\n In addition to fears of increased violence, Colombia also stands to bear the brunt of any migration crisis initiated by a conflict in Venezuela.<\/p>\n In an X post on Saturday morning, Petro said the government had bolstered humanitarian provisions on its eastern border, writing, \u201call the assistance resources at our disposal have been deployed in case of a mass influx of refugees.\u201d<\/p>\n To date, Colombia has received the highest number of Venezuelan refugees worldwide, with nearly 3 million of the approximately 8 million people who have left the country settling in Colombia.<\/p>\n The previous wave of mass migration in 2019 \u2013\u00a0which followed opposition leader Juan Guaido\u2019s failed attempt to overthrow Maduro \u2013 required a massive humanitarian operation to house, feed, and provide medical attention to refugees.<\/p>\n Such an operation is likely to prove even more challenging now, with Colombia losing roughly 70 percent of all humanitarian funds after the Trump administration shuttered its USAID programmes in the country last year.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a real possibility of short-term population movement, both precautionary and forced, especially if instability, reprisals, or power vacuums emerge,\u201d said Juan Carlos Viloria, a leader of the Venezuelan diaspora in Colombia.<\/p>\n \u201cColombia must prepare proactively by activating protection mechanisms, humanitarian corridors, and asylum systems, not only to respond to potential arrivals, but to prevent chaos and human rights violations at the border,\u201d added Viloria.<\/p>\n Analysts say Maduro\u2019s removal raises difficult questions for Petro, who has been engaged in a war of words with Trump since the US president assumed office last year.<\/p>\n The Colombian leader drew Trump\u2019s ire in recent months when he condemned Washington\u2019s military buildup in the Caribbean and alleged a Colombian fisherman had been killed in territorial waters. In response, the White House sanctioned Petro, with Trump calling him a \u201cthug\u201d and \u201can illegal drug dealer\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cPetro is irascible at the moment because he sees Trump and his threats no longer as empty, but as real possibilities,\u201d said Sergio Guzman, Director at Colombia Risk Analysis, a Bogota-based security consultancy.<\/p>\n Indeed, Trump has on multiple occasions floated military strikes against drug production sites in Colombia. However, experts say it is unlikely the White House would take unilateral action given their historic cooperation with Colombian security forces.<\/p>\n Despite Petro condemning Washington\u2019s intervention in Venezuela, he previously called Maduro a \u201cdictator\u201d and joined the US and other nations in refusing to recognise the strongman\u2019s fraudulent re-election as president in 2024.<\/p>\n Rather than supporting Maduro, the Colombian leader has positioned himself as a defender of national sovereignty and international law.<\/p>\n On Saturday, Petro called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, which Colombia joined as a temporary member just days ago.<\/p>\n \u201cColombia reaffirms its unconditional commitment to the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations,\u201d wrote the president in an X post.<\/p>\n This story has been published in conjunction with Latin America Reports.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Medellin, Colombia \u2013\u00a0The shock removal of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro by the United States military has triggered alarm in bordering Colombia, where analysts warn of the possibility of far-reaching repercussions. The Colombian government condemned Washington\u2019s early Saturday morning attacks on Venezuela \u2013 which included strikes on military targets and Maduro\u2019s capture \u2013 and announced plans […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7387,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latin-america-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7386\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7387"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Recommended Stories <\/h2>\n
The ELN factor<\/h2>\n
\u2018Mass influx of refugees\u2019<\/h2>\n
A further collapse in US-Colombia relations<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"