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The Biden Administration wants to work with Gustavo Petro, who was just sworn in as president of Colombia, to achieve “a peaceful solution” in Venezuela, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council told EFE news agency.
“Colombia has generously welcomed Venezuelan migrants and we look forward to working constructively and respectfully with Colombia’s new president on a wide range of issues of shared interest, including a peaceful solution in Venezuela,” the said spokesman said.
Petro wants diplomatic relations between Colombia and Venezuela, broken for more than three years, to be re-established and the two countries are expected to exchange ambassadors as soon as the new Colombian government is installed.
Relations between the two neighbors, who share a 1,370 miles border, broke down in February 2019 after Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó (backed by Colombian President Iván Duque) attempted to enter Venezuela with humanitarian aid donated by the Trump administration.
The US spokesman reiterated that, regardless of what Colombia does, the Biden administration continues to recognize Guaidó as interim president of Venezuela.
He acknowledged that, at the regional level, there is a diversity of views on whether diplomatic relations should be established with the Maduro regime; but argued that the majority of the international community is in favor of a dialogue leading to a peaceful solution to the political and humanitarian crisis in the country.
In this regard, he stressed the importance of holding free and fair elections in Venezuela.
After arriving at the White House in January 2021, Biden decided to maintain the recognition of Guaidó as interim president expressed in 2019 by his predecessor, Donald Trump; but during these months Venezuela has not been important in his foreign policy.
Biden phoned Petro after he won Colombia’s presidential election in June and reaffirmed his desire to collaborate on issues such as climate change, public health and the implementation of the 2016 peace accords.
