U.S. decertifies Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela on counternarcotics

Determination also names 23 countries as major drug transit, producing states

The United States has formally decertified Colombia, Bolivia, and Venezuela — alongside Afghanistan and Burma — as failing over the past 12 months to meet their obligations under international counternarcotics agreements or take measures required under U.S. law, according to a presidential determination sent to Congress on Wednesday.

The designation can trigger suspension of most U.S. foreign assistance, restrictions on development financing, and the U.S. obligation to oppose loans to those governments in multilateral institutions. The White House simultaneously determined that continuing U.S. assistance to Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, and Burma is vital to U.S. national interests — a finding that, under the statute, allows aid to continue flowing despite the decertification.

The Colombia assessment focused primarily on the administration of former President Gustavo Petro, during which coca cultivation and cocaine production reached record levels, the determination said. Colombia also failed to meet its own coca eradication targets, a situation Washington said undermined years of bilateral cooperation against drug trafficking. The determination nonetheless praised the work of Colombian security institutions and local authorities in confronting criminal and armed groups.

In the statement, signed by President Donald Trump, the administration described the election of Abelardo de la Espriella in positive terms, highlighting his commitment to “lead an aggressive campaign against coca cultivation and cocaine production.” The administration said it could reconsider Colombia’s designation if the government takes more aggressive steps to eradicate coca, reduce cocaine production and trafficking, and strengthen bilateral cooperation to bring leaders of criminal organizations to justice.

Colombia currently has about 626,000 acres of coca crops, according to official figures reported by RCN Noticias. The latest U.N. report, based on data collected in 2024, identified Colombia’s Pacific region as one of the areas most affected by drug trafficking. Colombian authorities seized about 1.96 million pounds of cocaine that year — 19% more than in 2023 — and destroyed 5,226 illegal laboratories. They also eradicated about 23,235 acres of coca crops, 54% less than the previous year. Petro was still president during that reporting period.

Colombia’s ambassador to the United States, María Consuelo Araújo, called the designation a “clear reflection of the misgovernment of the past four years,” placing responsibility on the previous administration, according to local news outlet Semana. Araújo said de la Espriella’s government has taken “concrete and decisive actions” to strengthen security and restore the state’s authority to confront drug trafficking and transnational organized crime.

The Bolivia assessment offered a more mixed picture: the determination praised progress in cocaine seizures and cooperation with U.S. law enforcement but said the country still has significant work to do to consistently meet its counternarcotics commitments.

On Venezuela, the determination accused President Nicolás Maduro’s government of involvement in one of the world’s largest cocaine trafficking networks. “The United States will continue seeking to bring Maduro and other members of his complicit regime to justice for their crimes,” the determination said. Washington said it would continue targeting Venezuelan criminal organizations such as Tren de Aragua.

The determination also identified 23 countries as major drug-transit or major illicit drug-producing countries. In Latin America and the Caribbean, that list includes the Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela. The White House said inclusion on the broader list does not necessarily reflect a government’s counternarcotics efforts or its level of cooperation with the United States; geographic, commercial, and economic factors that facilitate the transit or production of drugs or precursor chemicals also determine which countries are included.

The Trump administration framed the action as part of a broader declared national emergency over illicit drug trafficking. It said transnational organized criminal trafficking of fentanyl and other illicit drugs into the United States has created a public health crisis that, according to the administration, remains the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 44. The administration said the United States recorded an average of more than 200 deaths per day from illicit drugs in 2024.