The ELN is the most important armed group remaining in the country after the peace agreement signed in 2016 between the Colombian state and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The talks between President Gustavo Petro and ELN Commander Pablo Beltrán — who have the United Nations as guarantors, among other actors — will take place while a six-month cease-fire, which began on Aug. 3, is maintained.
In an Aug. 14 joint communiqué, both delegations declared that they “reaffirm their conviction about the importance of the participation of society in this process and of the transformations as the basis for peace and a national accord and that progress in the talks is equally reflected in compliance with the schedule established for the implementation of the social participation agreements and the cease-fire.”
Regarding the bilateral, national, and temporary cease-fire, the delegations pledged to “expand the mandate of the verification mission of the U.N. Security Council and to implement the monitoring and verification mechanism throughout the country and open channels of communication to avoid confrontations.”
In the last point of the communiqué, the parties state that “the delegations will continue developing these two agreements. Likewise, they will deal with other relevant issues regarding the development of the dialogue agenda and the peace process and that the results of these efforts will be communicated to the public in a timely manner.”
Finally, the Colombian government and the ELN expressed their thanks for “the hospitality and the efforts that have made possible this new round of talks by the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.”
They also expressed their gratitude “to the guarantor countries and to the special representative of the U.N. secretary general, Carlos Ruiz Massieu … [and] to the Episcopal Conference of Colombia and the group of countries for support, accompaniment, and cooperation.”