Colombian Government and ELN Begin Peace Talks in Cuba

On Tuesday, the Colombian Government and the guerrilla of the National Liberation Army (ELN) began the third cycle of peace talks in Havana.

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The round in Cuba will focus on the search for a bilateral ceasefire, on humanitarian relief and on the participation of civil society in the peace process.

This third cycle of talks follows the contacts that were held in Venezuela in November 2022 and then in Mexico between February and March 2023. The foundations for the ongoing round were laid in these previous meetings.

At today's inaugural act were the Colombian government negotiator Otty Patiño, the ELN member Israel Ramirez ("Pablo Beltran), and Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodriguez, who represents Cuba, which is one of the guarantor countries of the peace process.

The tweet reads, "Bruno Rodriguez: 'It is an honor for our country that the Colombian government and the ELN have asked Cuba to host the Peace Talks third cycle. Cuba acted and will act discreetly, impartially, and responsibly in order to find a political solution to the Colombian armed conflict'."

"The ELN members are committed to the transformations for peace... We have full willingness and will to reach a ceasefire and the participation of society," Beltran said.

Colombian Senator Maria Jose Pizarro called for "substantial and definitive progress on the agreed agenda," which would allow the peace process to be "irreversible."

The contacts between the parties in conflict occurred during President Juan Manuel Santos' administration (2010-2018). However, once far-right President Ivan Duque came to power, the peace talks were interrupted. In August 2022, President Gustavo Petro formally resumed the new peace process whose first meetings took place in Caracas in November.