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Colombian government, ELN to wrap up first round of peace talks

Xinhua, April 6, 2017 Adjust font size:

Colombia's government and National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas on Wednesday said they will conclude the first round of peace talks on Thursday.

The talks, aimed at ending five decades of fighting between the state forces and the leftist rebels, are being held on the outskirts of Ecuador's capital Quito.

"Tomorrow the first round will close with a joint pronouncement by the ELN-Government," the rebels posted to Twitter.

Talks began Feb. 7, not long after the administration of President Juan Manuel Santos signed a definitive peace deal with the country's largest rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

The two sides will take a month-long break and resume talks on May 3, the chief government negotiator Juan Camilo Restrepo said earlier this week.

The FARC and the government reached a peace agreement in November, 2016, following four years of negotiations.

The FARC are currently in the process of transitioning from an armed group to a political movement, but there have been hiccups in the process, due to continued violence from paramilitary groups, and a lack of preparation and funding on the part of the government. Endit