By Carlos Eduardo Sanchez on November 18, 2023
This afternoon, President Nicolás Maduro received at the Miraflores Palace his Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, who is on an official visit to the country. The meeting was held in order to fortify binational relations, which since the Colombian president took office have undergone a change that aims at laying the foundations for new ties, characterized by cooperation, respect and solidarity, thus eradicating the vestiges of thorny moments caused by previous ultra-right governments of the neighboring nation.
The dialogue, which corresponds to the fourth official visit of the Colombian President, took place after the presentation of his book “Una vida, muchas vidas” (One Life, Many Lives), which gathers “a history of many of an entire generation of Latin American revolutionaries”, in the context of the XIX International Book Fair of Venezuela (FILVEN).
In addition to reviewing the progress of the strategic alliance between Bogota and Caracas, the meeting is propitious to address issues related to migration and climate change, the latter raised by President Gustavo Petro on the eve of the meeting on November 18.
The last time the two leaders shared a handshake and reviewed visions on common issues was at the summit on migration convened by Mexico in Palenque, Chiapas, in October.
In the Central American nation, they also discussed the progress made since the reestablishment of relations between the two countries, and the Venezuelan President said that relations between Colombia and Venezuela have been advancing along the path of brotherhood, mutual respect and cooperation in different areas of development.
On the Venezuelan side, participating in this meeting at the Miraflores Palace were the first combatant of the Republic, Cilia Flores; the Executive Vice-President of the Republic, Delcy Rodríguez; the sectoral Vice-President of Public Works and Services and Minister of People’s Power for Internal Relations, Justice and Peace, Néstor Reverol; the sectoral Vice-President of Communication, Culture and Tourism and Minister of Communication, Alfred Ñáñez; Minister of People’s Power for the Office of the Presidency and Follow-up of Government Management, Jorge Márquez; Minister of People’s Power for Foreign Affairs, Yván Gil; Minister of People’s Power for Petroleum and President of the state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, Pedro Tellechea; for Transportation, Ramón Velásquez; Ecosocialism, Josué Lorca; Venezuelan Ambassador to Colombia, Carlos Martínez Mendoza; and the Vice Minister for Latin America, Rander Peña.
Representing Colombia were the First Lady of the Republic of Colombia, Verónica Alcocer; Colombian Ambassador to Venezuela, Milton Rengifo; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Álvaro Leyva Durán; Director of the Administrative Department of the Presidency and Head of the Presidential Office, Carlos Ramón González; Minister of the Environment, Susana Muhamad; Minister of Mines and Energy, Andrés Camacho; President of Ecopetrol, Ricardo Roa Barragán; and Director of the Department of Social Prosperity, Laura Camila Sarabia.
Earlier in the day
The President of Colombia arrived in the country at noon to fulfill a work agenda which includes the christening of his book “One Life, Many Lives” at the XIX International Book Fair of Venezuela Fiven 2023.
Upon his arrival, he was received by the Chancellor of the Republic, Yván Gil and by the Colombian Ambassador accredited in our country, Milton Rengifo.
After his election as president, on August 7, 2022, Petro proposed to resume relations with Venezuela, broken since 2019, during the government of Iván Duque. Relations between Caracas and Bogota were broken when Duque disavowed President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro at the encouragement of the US.
Maduro highlighted in the meeting the Bolivarian diplomacy of peace, promoted in the country since the arrival to power of Commander Hugo Chávez, for the benefit of the people in the region.
Through his account on the social network X (former Twitter), the Venezuelan head of state stressed,
“The union and consolidation of the Bolivarian Diplomacy of Peace is our banner to strengthen brotherly relations that allow us to create a new geopolitics in favor of the people. This is the path we are walking: that of cooperation, solidarity and development.”
Source: Ultimas Noticias, translation Resumen Latinoamericano – English