Colombian President Gustavo Petro has said that “cocaine is no worse than whiskey” as the production of coca, the drug’s base ingredient, surges under his presidency. Petro, a leftist former guerrilla group member who has previously called the US-led war on drugs a failure,

Colombian President Gustavo Petro claimed that “cocaine is no worse than whisky” and suggested the drug trade could be dismantled if cocaine were legalized worldwide, CNN News reports. Despite decades of government efforts to curb trafficking,