Bogotá, Oct 31 (AFP/APP): The leaders of Colombia and Venezuela will hold talks in Caracas Tuesday, the first meeting at presidential level since the neighbors reestablished diplomatic ties after a three-year break, the presidency in Bogota said.
Colombia’s leftist new president Gustavo Petro will meet counterpart Nicolas Maduro to discuss “the bilateral relationship between the two countries, the reopening of borders and Venezuela’s re-entry into the inter-American human rights system,” it said in a statement.
Venezuela broke off diplomatic relations in 2019 after Colombia’s conservative then-president Ivan Duque expressed support for opposition leader Juan Guaido — recognized by several countries as the victor in 2018 elections claimed by Maduro.
Since Petro succeeded Duque in August, Colombia’s first ever left-wing president has moved to mend relations with Venezuela’s populist leftist government.
Caracas and Bogota formally reestablished diplomatic relations on August 29 by sending ambassadors to each other’s capitals.
Last month, the countries reopened their shared border to vehicles transporting goods.
The reopening was considered to be the first step toward the complete reestablishment of commercial relations, which were worth about $7.2 billion in 2008.
The neighbors share a 2,200-kilometer (1,350-mile) border infested with armed groups fighting over lucrative drug trafficking and smuggling resources and routes.
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