Colombia has halted negotiations with rebel groups and shelved the peace process — Petro
Kyiv • UNN
The government of Abelardo de la Espriella has halted negotiations with the main armed groups. The authorities plan to counter them through military means.
The Colombian government has officially halted negotiations with a number of armed groups, effectively winding down the peace process launched under President Gustavo Petro. Bloomberg reports this, citing local media, writes UNN.
Details
The administration of new President Abelardo de la Espriella has made a series of decisions to close the main negotiating platforms. These include dialogue with the CNEB, the group known as Calarcá, and the formation operating in the Sierra Nevada mountain range.
The decision effectively ends the authorities’ official dialogue with the country’s main illegal armed groups. It was made after Colombian forces struck rebel positions on Thursday, while the authorities ordered the extradition to the United States of individuals suspected of drug trafficking.
The new president is betting on a forceful approach
De la Espriella, who took office this month, had earlier promised to abandon the previous government’s policy of negotiating with armed groups that finance their activities through cocaine trafficking.
The new administration instead plans to fight such groups using military methods. The president of Colombia and his American counterpart, Donald Trump, criticized the previous peace process, arguing that it allowed armed groups to expand their influence and increase their revenues.