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Ecuadorean Minister of Foreign Affairs Ricardo Patiño said that Saturday’s meeting between Colombian and Venezuelan foreign ministers was “hopeful” and may lead to a presidential meeting in the proximate future.
“The ministers of foreign relations of Venezuela and Colombia had an important meeting to address sensitive topics of their bilateral relations,” Patiño said in a press conference in Quito, Ecuador, on Saturday.
He added that the results of the meeting will be consulted with their respective Presidents Nicolas Maduro and Juan Manuel Santos in order to “plan a next presidential meeting.”
Venezuela and Colombia began high level talks Saturday over Caracas' decision to close border crossings due to smuggling and paramilitary concerns.
Both Venezuela and Colombia are heading into the talks optimistic a solution can be reached, according to Ecuador’s foreign minister Ricardo Patino.
“Over the past two days … we have seen a clear desire to move closer and closer (to a solution), and a willingness to dialogue, which is all we can hope for,” Patino said.
He added that he hoped Saturday’s meeting would be followed by more talks, including at the presidential level.
The Ecuadorean government has been supporting calls for dialogue between Venezuela and Colombia, in efforts to ease tensions between the two nations.
Colombian Foreign Minister Maria Angel Holguin and Venezuelan Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez were engaging in direct negotiations in Quito, Ecuador at the time of writing, covering an agenda expected to be dominated by the ongoing border issue.
Tensions between the two countries were sparked when Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered the border with Colombia closed after paramilitaries attacked Venezuelan soldiers.
Officials from both countries have since traded blame over the problems at the border. Maduro has accused his Colombian counterpart of not doing enough to address paramilitary activity in Colombia, which has crept over into Venezuela.
Ahead of Saturdays’s meeting, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos spoke to the press Wednesday, accusing Venezuela of “blaming Colombia for its problems.”
“If you close the border, its a sovereign act, if you deport people without documents, that’s a sovereign act, but you can’t violate human rights,” Santos said referring to the recent deportations.
RELATED: The Height of Hypocrisy: Santos Lectures Others on Human Rights
Venezuelan officials have been quick to point out that more than 5 million Colombians currently live in Venezuela, including some 176,000 official refugees, after fleeing violence, austerity measures and lack of opportunities in Colombia.
RELATED: The Hypocrisy of Europe Criticizing Venezuela on Refugees
Despite Santos' remarks, both foreign ministers have since met with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon on separate occasions, in efforts to mend diplomatic relations. The upcoming dialogue between the two leaders could be a step in a positive direction for the neighboring countries.
Ahead of Saturday's talks, Ban said he had faith Venezuela and Colombia will be able to reach a solution to the current impasse, according to his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
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Meeting H.E. Mrs. Delcy Eloína Rodríguez Gómez, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
— UN Secretary-General (@secgen)
September 11, 2015
“The secretary-general conveyed to the two foreign ministers that he trusted both countries would address border challenges through constructive dialogue,” Dujarric stated.
