ALWAGHT- Colombia has revealed a $4.3bn agreement to purchase 17 Swedish-built fighter jets amid ongoing tensions with the United States.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced the country’s deal with Sweden’s Saab to purchase Gripen fighter jets, describing them as a “deterrent weapon to achieve peace” amid what he called a “messy” geopolitical environment. He emphasized that the jets are intended to discourage aggression against Colombia from any source.
The announcement comes amid growing regional unease over a US military build-up in Latin America, including deadly attacks on vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Washington has accused countries like Venezuela of failing to stop drug trafficking from Colombia, claims that have been rejected by regional leaders and criticized by legal experts and rights groups as extrajudicial killings.
US President Donald Trump has also alleged that Petro and Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro are involved in the drug trade, which both leaders deny. Although there were warnings in US media of possible strikes on Latin American targets, Trump later denied plans to attack Venezuelan territory, contradicting his earlier statements.
