Cuba will be the host country of the third phase of the Peace Dialogues Table between Colombian Government and the National Liberation Army (ELN), both parties informed this Wednesday just a few days before the end of the current cycle that is being held in Mexico City since mid February.
“The peace delegations of the Colombian Government and the ELN deeply thank the Cuban Government and its people for the unconditional willingness and fundamental support that, for more than four decades, have given to peacebuilding efforts in Colombia“, has indicated a joint communiqué, which does not specify a date for the start of the talks in Cuba.
They announced that “the third cycle will begin after a pause after the closing of the sessions that are currently taking place in Mexico City and that have produced substantial progress on the agenda of the talks”.
During the talks in the Mexican capital, the key point has been to work to achieve an agreement for a ceasefire by both parties, but mechanisms for the participation of society in the construction of peace have also been discussed.
It is expected that this Friday the delegations of the Government of Colombia and the ELN guerrilla will release a joint communiqué at the end of the cycle in Mexico City where Present your achievements.
In an interview with EFE last Friday, the ELN’s chief negotiator, Paul Beltranstressed that they had risen “confidence levels” between both parties, but he was cautious about agreeing to a bilateral ceasefire.
“We aspire that in this cycle in Mexico we can at least mend the essence of what a ceasefire is. There is no agreement but the idea that each party puts on the table what are the essential elements and on that have a first package of consensus,” Beltrán said.
Negotiations between the Colombian government and the ELN, which were interrupted for four years after starting in 2017, resumed in Caracas in 2022 with the sponsorship of Cuba, Norway and Venezuela as guarantor countries.
MexicoWith Venezuela, Norway, Chili and Brazil are guarantors of peace talks, while Sweden, Germany, Swiss and Spain They act as accompanying countries.
