Nicolas Maduro and Gustavo Petro holding talks in Caracas as neighbouring international locations restore relationship severed in 2019.
The presidents of Colombia and Venezuela have met for the primary time in years, because the neighbouring international locations proceed to restore their relationship and push to deepen financial ties.
The talks within the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, on Tuesday between Colombia’s new left-wing President Gustavo Petro and Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro come simply weeks after the 2 nations reopened key, shared border crossings.
Petro, who took workplace in August, had promised to reset Colombia’s ties to Venezuela, which had been severed in 2019 resulting from political tensions and safety points alongside the border.
In a press release earlier than Tuesday’s talks, Petro’s workplace mentioned he and Maduro would focus on bilateral relations, reopening the border and reintegrating Venezuela into the inter-American human rights methods.
The assembly additionally comes as a part of efforts to spice up regional economies and defend the Amazon, it mentioned.
Petro was met at Simon Bolivar Worldwide Airport by Vice-President Delcy Rodriguez and Overseas Minister Carlos Faria round 1:40pm native time (17:40 GMT) earlier than leaving for the presidential palace to satisfy with Maduro.
“For six years, there was a political vacuum between two neighbouring international locations, Colombia and Venezuela,” Petro mentioned at a Colombian army airport earlier than leaving for Caracas.
“We in fact have quite a bit to say to one another in any case that point,” he mentioned, including that the assembly’s agenda was huge open.
Al Jazeera’s Alessandro Rampietti, reporting from Bogota, mentioned the talks are “very important for each international locations” and mark “the primary time that a Colombian president [has] travelled to Venezuelan territory since 2016”.
Rampietti defined that Maduro is hoping to make use of the assembly to “present that he won't be that remoted in any case within the area” whereas Petro made a transparent demand for Venezuela to return to inter-American rights methods and courts.
“This can be a approach for Gustavo Petro to be seen not as anyone who's legitimising Maduro,” Rampietti mentioned, “however he’s hoping to be seen as a mediator right here – bringing Venezuela again into the worldwide organisation of the American states.”
Colombia and Venezuela re-established full diplomatic relations in late August, sending ambassadors to one another’s capitals.
“Relations with Venezuela ought to by no means have been severed. We're brothers and an imaginary line can't separate us,” Colombia’s new envoy, Armando Benedetti, mentioned at the moment.
Caracas broke off relations with Bogota in 2019 after Venezuelan opposition activists tried to ship support vehicles from Colombia in a transfer that Maduro’s authorities mentioned was a entrance for an tried coup.
Former right-wing Colombian President Ivan Duque additionally accused Venezuela of backing insurgent teams working alongside the international locations’ 2,200km (1,367-mile) shared border, which has seen elevated violence lately.
In March, Human Rights Watch accused Venezuelan troopers of conducting joint operations with Colombian rebels in Venezuela’s Apure state.
The reopening of border crossings in September was welcomed by residents on either side of the frontier who mentioned they hoped it might deliver much-needed financial exercise to the world.
Different observers mentioned they had been optimistic it additionally would create safer circumstances for migrants and refugees crossing the border.
Venezuela has seen a mass exodus lately amid a socioeconomic and safety disaster, and greater than seven million Venezuelan refugees and migrants now stay in different international locations, together with Colombia.
In the meantime, Venezuela, together with Chile and Cuba, shall be a guarantor for deliberate negotiations between the Colombian authorities and the Nationwide Liberation Military (ELN), Colombia’s largest remaining insurgent group.
Whereas Bogota reached a take care of left-wing Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels in 2016, the nation has seen a surge in violence as FARC dissidents and different insurgent teams battle for management of territory, particularly in areas exterior the state’s management.
Petro, a former insurgent fighter himself, is pushing to finish armed battle in Colombia as a part of a coverage dubbed “complete peace”.
The ELN has insisted that its central command has sufficient authority over fractured preventing models to barter a real peace with the federal government.
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