(MENAFN) Colombia's Interior Minister, Armando Benedetti, expressed strong criticism toward the United States on Friday after being included on its sanctions list, emphasizing that he has no involvement in the drug trafficking accusations.

“For having defended the dignity of the country and stated that the president @petrogustavo is not a drug trafficker, they put me on the OFAC (US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control) list without me having attacked them,” Benedetti posted on the US social media platform X.

He added that he has never visited the residence of even a single drug trafficker, asserting: “That shows that every empire is unjust and that its anti-drug fight is a sham for armamentism. In this country, no one buys the story that I am a drug trafficker.”

Benedetti further commented, “For the US, a non-violent statement is the same as being a drug trafficker. Gringos go home.”

Nicolas Petro, son of President Gustavo Petro, who was also placed on the sanctions list alongside his father, denounced the measure as politically driven.

“For the sole fact of being the son of @petrogustavo they unjustly put me on the clinton list. An unprecedented political and judicial persecution. I will go to international organizations to defend my rights,” he declared.

The United States confirmed on Friday that it had imposed sanctions on the Colombian president, citing his government’s alleged shortcomings in combating the illegal drug trade.

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