MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Guarantors of Colombia-ELN peace talks ratified

Other countries such as Mexico Brazil and the United States might soon join the process

Negotiators in the Colombian peace process involving the government of President Gustavo Petro and remnants of the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas Friday agreed in Caracas to ratify Cuba, Norway, and Venezuela as guarantor countries in the talks.

They also decided to invite Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and the United States to join the process. “It was agreed to advance diplomatic actions with the government of the United States to know its willingness to participate in this process through a special envoy to the dialogue table,” Senator Iván Cepeda of the negotiating team told reporters.

Both parties also welcomed the idea to fathom the willingness of Germany, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland to reactivate the so-called Group of Countries of Accompaniment, Support, and Cooperation, it was reported.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, formally represented at the talks by his special representative in Colombia, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, and Monsignor Héctor Fabio Henao of the Colombian Episcopal Conference were also formalized as accompaniers of the negotiations.

It was also agreed Friday to resume “humanitarian actions and dynamics, for which humanitarian relief processes will be advanced in the short term,” in accordance with the 2016 agenda that was interrupted when negotiations were broken by an act of violence killing 22 people.

The negotiating table also decided to form a joint communications team to “report in an objective, timely, clear and transparent manner on the development and progress of this dialogue process.”

Since dialogue was halted, the ELN was reported to have grown from 1,800 to 2,500 members. Talks were interrupted four years ago and their resumption had been part of Petro's campaign promise.