HAVANA, Cuba (AP) 鈥 Representatives of Colombia鈥檚 government and the country鈥檚 largest remaining guerrilla group met in Cuba on Tuesday to restart peace talks aimed at reaching a cease-fire and resolving a conflict dating back to the 1960s.
It is the third round of talks with the communist-inspired 好色tv Liberation Army, known as ELN, in negotiations relaunched in November shortly after President as Colombia鈥檚 first leftist president.
鈥淲e encourage you to take advantage of the magic, mysticism and hope that Cuba always offers,鈥 said Cuba鈥檚 Foreign Minister Bruno Rodr铆guez, welcoming Colombia鈥檚 government officials and a delegation of the ELN to the capital Havana.
Pablo Beltr谩n, the rebels鈥 chief negotiator, said the ELN is committed to a 鈥渢ransformation鈥 to achieve peace and called the meeting a 鈥渉istoric coincidence鈥 to reach a bilateral cease-fire.
Tuesday鈥檚 meeting was marked by a surprise appearance of Nicol谩s Rodr铆guez Bautista, alias Gabino, who led the ELN from the 1990s until 2021, when he left citing health reasons.
Also in attendance were Colombian senators Iv谩n Cepeda and Mar铆a Jos茅 Pizarro, who said the talks seek to find 鈥渞eal solutions for a country overwhelmed by six decades of war.鈥
Petro has said that peace talks with the ELN are a cornerstone of his plan to bring 鈥渢otal peace鈥 to the nation of 50 million people, where some rural areas are still under the grip of drug gangs and rebel groups despite a with the larger Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.
