section_path: History/Second peace negotiations: 2022–present/Revival of peace talks
section_name: Revival of peace talks
paragraph_text: Revival of peace talks
  
  On 21 November 2022, after the election of Gustavo Petro breathed new life into the peace process, delegates of the ELN and the new Colombian government met in Venezuela to resume the peace talks that faltered in January 2019, after the Bogotá car bombing. The negotiations continued into the first week of December 2022, with representatives of the ELN and the Colombian government meeting for the continuation of peace talks in El Ávila National Park in Caracas. On the occasion, ELN chief negotiator Pablo Beltrán stated that Colombians have to work towards reconciliation and recreate a new nation in peace and equity and in a similar spirit Danilo Rueda, the High Commissioner for Peace in Colombia, stated that peace is not only a question of laying down arms, but a process linked to the need for change. Following the conclusion of the first round of talks, the ELN announced a unilateral holiday truce lasting from 24 December 2022 until 2 January 2023.
  
  After Mexico agreed to be an official guarantor to the peace process, it was chosen as the host country for the second round of talks, expected to begin in January 2023. With the addition of Mexico, along with Cuba, Chile, Norway and Venezuela, there are now five guarantor countries to the peace process.
  
  After misunderstandings arose regarding a bilateral ceasefire between the ELN and the government, an emergency meeting took place on 21 January in Caracas to reassure both sides of their intentions and to set a date for the second round of negotiations, scheduled to commence on 12 February 2023.
  
  Prior to the restart of peace talks, the influential ELN-commander Antonio Garcia criticised the approach of the Colombian government, stating that "the peace process cannot be used as an 'umbrella' for other issues". The former commander of the ELN, Carlos Velandia, dismissed this stance as posturing ahead of the next round of talks, which commenced on time in Mexico City, opining that the ELN wants to negotiate its own accord and not be lumped in with other groups.
  
  The Colombian government appointed Vera Grabe Loewenherz as its head negotiator with the ELN in December 2023.
  
  In 17 January 2025 the Colombian government suspended peace talks yet again after a massacre carried out in Tibú due to continuous gunfights with FARC-EP dissidents which resulted in around 50 civilians killed.