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Venezuela, Colombia sign deal to revive trade after 4-year suspension

Friday, 17 February 2023 9:48 AM [ Last Update: Friday, 17 February 2023 10:00 AM ]

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro (R) and his Colombian counterpart Gustavo Petro hold folders after signing a bilateral agreement at the Atanasio Girardot International Bridge (formerly known as Tienditas bridge) in Ureña, Tachira state, Venezuela on February 16, 2023. (Photo by AFP)

The leaders of Colombia and Venezuela have signed an agreement to revive a trade deal that had been on hold for four years.

In a signing ceremony with Colombian President Gustavo Petro at a bridge border crossing, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said he was committed to establishing a common “economic zone” with special conditions for trade.

Petro, who was elected as the first left-wing president of Colombia last year, said “We have to fill these bridges with trade, remove any barriers that may exist.”

The initial agreement was signed in 2011 after then-Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez chose to withdraw from the Andean Community (CAN), a free trade group of which Colombia remains a part.

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Diplomatic ties between the two countries were severed after Petro’s predecessor, Ivan Duque, joined several other countries in recognizing opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuela’s legitimate leader.

Embassies and consulates in both countries were shut down, and flights between the two Latin American neighbors were also grounded. The border between them also remained completely shut between 2019 and late 2021.

However, since Petro came to power in early August last year, he immediately sought to reestablish relations with the Maduro government, and Thursday’s event was the fourth face-to-face meeting between the two leaders.

The countries’ 2,200-kilometer (1,400-mile) border was fully opened to vehicles last September.

Maduro said the deal would “update” tariffs and trade regulations, but neither president gave further details on the event.

In 2008, trade between the two South American countries reached $7.2 billion, before falling to around $400 million when diplomatic ties were severed.

According to the estimates of the Colombian-Venezuelan Chamber of Integration (Cavecol), the return to normal business will increase the figure to 1.2 billion dollars in 2022.

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