Colombian government may declare ceasefire with leading guerrilla group: minister

The Colombian government may declare a bilateral ceasefire with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the country's largest rebel group, before signing a final peace agreement, Interior Minister Juan Fernando Cristo said Thursday.

"While negotiators move forward, they will evaluate if it is necessary to declare a bilateral ceasefire and, if so, it might be declared before signing a definitive agreement," Cristo was quoted by the Caracol Radio network as saying.

The ceasefire would "be kept only until the end of the process which depends on the talks' dynamics," he said.

He also referred to an announcement made Wednesday by President Juan Manuel Santos, in which the head of state instructed government negotiators in Havana, Cuba, to speed up the talks toward an armistice.

"The government will clearly start talking about a possible bilateral ceasefire, which would positively hasten the end of the conflict, but it depends on how fast the talks advance. However, it is a good sign," Cristo said.

Meanwhile, the minister voiced his hope that the National Liberation Army (ELN), the second largest guerrilla group in Colombia, will respond to Santos' call to initiate negotiations similar to the ongoing process with FARC.

The Colombian government has been in an exploratory phase of peace talks with the ELN since last year, and has completed two years of talks with FARC, in a bid to reach a final peace agreement aimed at ending a five-decade conflict in the South American country.

According to government figures, the conflict between the Colombian government and FARC has killed 220,000 people and displaced as many as 5.3 million others. Endi