Colombia, ELN Rebels Declare Mutual Ceasefire

MEXICO CITY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th March, 2023) A Colombian governmental delegation and a delegation of the rebel National Liberation Army (ELN) announced a ceasefire after talks in Mexico, provided that there is a mutual cessation of offensive operations.

"The National Government and the National Liberation Army declare the beginning of an agreement on a ceasefire and a peaceful dialogue ... subject to the mutual cessation of offensive actions and the preservation of defensive ones, with verification and monitoring mechanisms," the agreement between the two delegations, read out at the conclusion of the Friday talks, says.

During the negotiations in Mexico, the parties to the Colombian conflict also agreed on and signed a new near-, medium- and long term-agenda for the peace process.

Mexican Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said on Friday, closing the negotiations, that Mexico was celebrating its contribution to peace in Colombia by hosting the talks between the government of President Gustavo Petro and ELN.

The Colombian government and ELN rebels wrapped up three weeks of peace talks in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas in December, but no truce was signed. Following the talks in Mexico, the two sides are set to hold more negotiations in Cuba.

ELN is Colombia's second-largest rebel group after the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The Colombian government and several other countries and organizations, including the United States and the European Union, have designated ELN as a terrorist organization. The government of Gustavo Petro seeks to achieve peace with the ELN guerrillas and other armed groups in order to end over 50 years of armed conflict in the country.