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Venezuela and Colombia to normalise ties after border row | |
(about 14 hours later) | |
President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela and his Colombian counterpart, Juan Manuel Santos, have agreed to "a progressive normalisation" of their common border. | |
Venezuela closed parts of the border a month ago and launched a major anti-smuggling operation. | |
Mr Maduro says up to 40% of Venezuelan goods are smuggled out of the country. | |
Meeting in Ecuador, the two presidents also said they would return ambassadors to each other's capitals immediately. | Meeting in Ecuador, the two presidents also said they would return ambassadors to each other's capitals immediately. |
'Common sense' | |
"Common sense, dialogue and peace between our peoples and our countries have triumphed today," said Mr Maduro after the talks in Quito aimed at defusing the crisis. | |
The Venezuelan leader ordered the closure on 19 August after three Venezuelan soldiers and a civilian were injured in an attack in San Antonio del Tachira near the border. | |
He has since extended the measure to a total of three border states. | |
The closure was first imposed for 36 hours but has since been prolonged indefinitely. | |
The two sides on Monday agreed to a "normalisation" but did not set a date for a re-opening of the border. | |
Government officials from both sides are due to meet on Wednesday to work on the details of the "normalisation plan". | |
Smugglers' haven | |
More than 1,500 Colombians living illegally in Venezuela were also evicted as part of the anti-smuggling operation. | |
Another 20,000 are estimated to have left fearing deportation. | |
Some said they had been mistreated by the Venezuelan security forces, prompting Colombia to recall its ambassador from Caracas in protest. | |
Venezuela later recalled its ambassador from Bogota. | |
President Santos said on Monday that Venezuela "should have respected the rights of Colombians" that were forced out. | |
The 2,200km-long border (1,400 miles) between the two countries is porous and there has historically been a steady flow of people both ways. | |
It is a haven for smugglers and criminal gangs, as well as Colombia's left-wing guerrilla groups, who often extort local residents. | |
The Colombian leader said on Tuesday: "I agree that criminal organisations working in the border area are a big problem, but the best way to deal with it is by working together." | |
The Venezuelan president agreed to investigate allegations that Venezuelan jets violated Colombian air space earlier this month. | |
The allegations, and their dismissal as a Colombian fabrication by Venezuelan Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez, further ratcheted tensions between the two countries. | |
Monday's talks were facilitated by Uruguayan President Tabare Vasquez and his Ecuadorean counterpart, Rafael Correa. | Monday's talks were facilitated by Uruguayan President Tabare Vasquez and his Ecuadorean counterpart, Rafael Correa. |
The summit was preceded by two meetings between the Colombian and the Venezuelan foreign ministers. | The summit was preceded by two meetings between the Colombian and the Venezuelan foreign ministers. |