Santos and Chavez meet and re-establish relations
By Daniel Brody, Editorial Director
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
In one of his first moves as Colombia's new president, Juan Manuel Santos invited Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez to Santa Marta on Tuesday for direct talks about the two countries' diplomatic crisis.
In a four hour meeting described by Santos as "frank, direct, and sincere", the two came to an agreement to re-establish diplomatic relations and not to interfere with the internal issues of the other country.
Santos told the press after the meeting that Chavez had also agreed not to tolerate any "groups at the margins of the law" within his territory, such as the guerilla group FARC.
The two heads of state also agreed to fix trade imbalances and agreements, begin planning projects together on the border between the two countries, and work on improving infrastructure shared by the two countries.
Chavez also talked to the press when the meeting ended, and confirmed that the two leaders had decided to restore full relations with one another.
"Count on my friendship, President Santos," said a beaming Chavez, who wore a brightly colored shirt with the design of the Venezuelan flag.
The spirit of Simon Bolivar, who liberated both countries from Spain, inspired Hugo Chavez' Bolivarian Revolution, and who died in Santa Marta in 1830, was invoked by both presidents throughout the day.
Relations between the two countries had been severed by the Venezuelan government since last month, after outgoing Colombian president Alvaro Uribe alleged that Chavez' government had been assisting FARC camps located within Venezuela's borders.
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