Mexico City, February 13. The Colombian government and the guerrillas of the National Liberation Army (ELN) began this Monday in Mexico City the second round of peace negotiations, with the main objective of reaching a bilateral ceasefire agreement.
“We are here with the impetus that Colombian President Gustavo Petro gave to peace as state policy,” said Otty Patiño, head of the Colombian government delegation, during the inauguration of the table of dialogue of the Inter-American Conference on Social Security (ISSC) in Mexico City.
The key point of the talks, which are expected to last three weeks in Mexico, will be to reach a ceasefire agreement between the two sides.
“Our program aims for transformations and an end to armed conflict, with the determination to achieve a comprehensive and lasting peace,” said Pablo Beltrán, head of the ELN delegation.
Negotiations between the Colombian government and the ELN, interrupted for four years after starting in 2017, resumed on November 22 in Caracas under the aegis of Cuba, Norway and Venezuela as guarantors.
Although President Petro announced the entry into force of the bilateral ceasefire on December 31, the guerrillas denied it a few days later, arguing that it had not been agreed during the talks.
Mexico, along with Venezuela, Chile, Norway and Brazil, are the guarantors of the peace talks, while Sweden, Germany, Switzerland and Spain act as accompanying countries.