Kerry Meets Colombian FARC-EP Delegates in Cuba

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Kerry Meets Colombian FARC-EP Delegates in Cuba

March 21st, 2016

Awake Goy

Christof Lehmann (nsnbc) : U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will meet peace negotiators of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC-EP) on Monday. Kerry is part of the delegation that followed U.S. President Barack Obama on his historical visit to the Cuban capital. The Colombian government and the FARC-EP are expected to sign a final peace accord in 2016, ending 51 years of civil war.

Colombian sources confirmed for nsnbc that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will be meeting FARC-EP chief negotiator Ivan Marquez and other FARC-EP negotiators on Monday. No official meeting place was mentioned, but it is likely that the meeting will take place in the same venue in Havana where peace talks have been held since 2012.

Thus far it has not been confirmed whether or not the meeting has taken place and details about the scheduled time are “sketchy”. The meeting would be the first between the FARC-EP and an official representative of the U.S.’ government since the 1990s.

The meeting will reportedly been held within 48 hours of the deadline for the planned signing of the final peace accord by FARC-EP leader “Timochenko” and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. It is, however, at this time uncertain whether the peace accord will be signed this month as scheduled or whether there will be some delays.

Both the FARC-EP and the government have previously announced that it is improbable that the March deadline can be met. Both sides have also appraised the developments as positive and have voiced confidence that the agreement will be signed in 2016

The United States have played a tentative but active role in facilitating certain aspects of the peace talks. U.S. Special Envoy Bernard Aronson has been permanently attending the talks since his appointment in February last year.

CH/L – nsnbc 21.03.2016