The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, and the ruler Nicolás Maduro spoke in La Casona. According to Presidencial Press, the presidents They reviewed the bilateral relations and the Agreement for the Protection of Investments between both countries. The Colombian Government inaugurated this Thursday in Tibú, in the department of Norte de Santander, an immigration checkpoint to strengthen the presence of the State
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, arrived in Venezuela on the afternoon of March 23 to hold a meeting with the ruler Nicolás Maduro. The meeting was held in La Casona and it was the fourth time that both leaders have met.
According to Presidencial Press, the presidents They reviewed bilateral relations, the Agreement for the Protection of Investments between both countries, and spoke about the definition of the route to strengthen commercial exchange.
Although there were no statements after the meeting, it was learned that the agenda for this Thursday’s bilateral meeting It included the fight against drug trafficking and collaboration on the border, the opening of the Colombian consulates in Venezuela, which are expected to be 15, of which the one in Caracas is already open; and the Amazon Summit in the framework of ACTO (Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization).
Petro was accompanied by the head of the Office of the Presidency, Laura Sarabia Torres; the Minister of Commerce, Darío Germán Umaña, the Minister of Transportation, Guillermo Francisco Reyes. The delegation is also the ambassador of Colombia in Venezuela, Armando Benedetti.
#At this time President @PetroGustavo up to the city of Caracas, Venezuela.#InternationalAgenda???? pic.twitter.com/gXbifI8zB7
– Colombian Presidency ?? (@infopresidencia) March 23, 2023
At the meeting, Maduro was with the First Lady, Cilia Flores, with the Executive Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez, the Minister of Productive Agriculture and Land, Wilmar Castro Soteldo, and the Minister of Transportation, Ramón Velásquez Araguayán; and the president of the 2020 National Assembly (AN), Jorge Rodríguez, among others.
through the decree 0422 The Colombian Executive announced that the trip to Venezuela would take place “in order to participate in a bilateral meeting” with Maduro.
On February 16, Petro and Maduro signed the Partial Scope Agreement of a Commercial Nature No. 28. The meeting took place on the Atanasio Girardot bridge.
«We have signed a commercial meeting, these bridges have to be full of commerce. We have enabled these bridges and we have made customs agreements,” Petro said. At the same time, the President of Colombia emphasized that the authorization of border bridges is important because they are not only filled with commerce, “it is so that they are filled with people in their constant transit. May this border line not separate us”.
The Colombian president maintained that what happened in the trails in the past has been a constant violation of human rights and “the handing over of this border line to the mafias. There is no place for legality here.”
For his part, Maduro said that “fresh winds are blowing” in the relationship with Colombia. “Venezuela and Colombia are in a new phase of building relations in all lines of action,” he said.
Petro delegates
After the meeting between Petro and Maduro, Armando Benedetti reported on the Colombian president’s visit to the embassy in Caracas.
«At this time I receive my key, my friend, President Gustavo Petro at the ambassador’s residence in Caracas. And he took Bolívar to Colombia!” he said.
At this time I receive my key, my friend, the president @petrogustavo at the ambassador’s residence in Caracas. And he took Bolívar to Colombia! pic.twitter.com/MQfl4uT9DR
— Armando Benedetti (@AABenedetti) March 23, 2023
This Thursday, the The Colombian government inaugurated this Thursday in Tibú, in the department of Norte de Santander, on the border with Venezuela, an immigration checkpoint to strengthen the presence of the State in this region hit by violence.
The director of Colombian Migration, Fernando García, said in a statement that the objective of this position is to directly address the “mobility and integration processes and generate prevention strategies against the violation of the rights of both migrants and host populations.” .
On the occasion of the president’s trip, the Government of the neighboring country announced that the Minister of Labor, Gloria Inés Ramírez Ríos, will be able to exercise constitutional actions while Petro is outside the country.
The meeting was initially scheduled for Monday, March 20, but the Colombian president canceled the trip.
A few weeks ago, Colombian Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva was at the Miraflores Palace, a few days later former congresswoman Aída Merlano was deported, so it is presumed that the visit was to discuss, among other things, that issue.
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