Historic but not enough? Colombia’s Gustavo Petro defends cocaine seizures

The Colombian president has intercepted record volumes of illicit cocaine. But will it be enough to lessen pressure from the United States?

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Bogota, Colombia – On November 20, 2025, Colombian police burst into a shipping container in Buenaventura, Colombia’s largest port on the Pacific Coast, foiling a scheme to smuggle 14 tonnes of cocaine, valued at $390m.

It was the Colombian police’s largest cocaine seizure in a decade — and a sign of Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s ramped-up campaign to intercept drugs.