Following an attack that left two soldiers dead and over twenty wounded, peace talks between the National Liberation Army (ELN) and the Colombian government have been placed on hold. This move is a significant setback for President Gustavo Petro's "total peace" policy, which aimed to remove the ELN from Colombia's protracted internal conflict.
The peace delegation sent by the government declared on Wednesday that "the peace process is on hold," adding that the ELN's "unequivocal" peacemaking is required for it to proceed and that its viability is "severely diminished" otherwise. Six rounds of discussions, held in Mexico, Cuba, and Venezuela, have taken place since the talks began in late 2022.
The Arauca region, which is close to the Venezuelan border, was the scene of the attack that led to the suspension on Tuesday. The negotiations were already under stress for several months, and this episode has made things worse.
Before this attack, negotiations had encountered difficulties. There was division inside the ELN as a result of the government's choice to hold separate negotiations with a faction that was opposed to it in the southwest. The ELN resumed kidnappings as a result of this development; it had stopped using this approach throughout the discussions.
Since the breakdown of the ceasefire, the ELN has resumed bombing oil pipelines, causing environmental damage from oil leaks, and intensified its offensives against the Colombian military and police. The Colombian military has retaliated by stepping up operations against the insurgents.
Arrest warrants for the top ELN commanders, who are now in Cuba and Venezuela, will be reactivated as a result of the suspension of peace negotiations. The government's dissatisfaction with the continuous bloodshed and the collapse of the peace process is evident in this decision.
Concerning the halt of negotiations, the ELN has not responded as of yet. The state of affairs is still unstable, and it is unclear how the peace process will go.
The collapse of the talks is a serious setback for Colombia's peace endeavors, which were meant to tackle decades of domestic strife involving multiple armed factions. The government's reaction to the ELN's actions underscores the continued difficulties in reaching a comprehensive peace agreement.
Both sides are under increasing strain as the crisis drags on, with the government working to bring stability back and the ELN maybe looking to take advantage of the circumstances for strategic gain. The outbreak of hostilities emphasizes how challenging it is to balance divergent interests in the quest for enduring peace.
