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Colombia’s government and the leftist ELN guerrillas have agreed to begin ceasefire negotiations. The parties announced this on Friday when they concluded a second round of peace talks in Mexico.
ELN veteran and chief negotiator Pablo Beltrán said “the first steps towards a ceasefire have been taken”.
Government negotiator Otty Patiño said a ceasefire is the wish of “all of Colombia”.
– We have heard that wish and we feel that the ELN delegation has also heard it, said Patiño.
For more than 50 years, Colombia has been plagued by armed conflicts between the state and various left-wing guerrillas, far-right paramilitaries and drug traffickers.
The government resumed peace talks with the ELN after Gustavo Petro won elections in August, becoming Colombia’s first leftist president.
The talks were stopped by his conservative representative Iván Duque after 22 people were killed in a bomb attack on a police academy in Bogotá.
The next round of talks is planned to be held in Cuba, but so far no date has been set.