Colombia's ELN rebels call for national accord as U.S.-Venezuela pressure mounts

Colombia’s largest remaining rebel group called for a “national accord” with the country’s incoming government on Monday, as it faces the prospect of joint military operations from both Colombia and the United States following the U.S. capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

The National Liberation Army, known by its Spanish acronym ELN, published the appeal on its X account, saying it hopes to work with Colombia’s new government after elections this year on agreements to fight poverty, protect ecosystems and reduce drug trafficking in rural areas.

The overture comes as pressure on the ELN has intensified since the United States seized Maduro in a pre-dawn raid earlier this month and brought him to the U.S. to face drug trafficking charges. A federal indictment in New York alleges that Maduro provided protection to the ELN in Venezuelan territory and worked with the group to traffic cocaine.

Petro sets conditions for resumed talks

Colombian President Gustavo Petro posted on X on Monday that the ELN must give up drug trafficking and recruiting minors if it wants peace talks to resume. Petro also called on the group to stop using camps in Venezuela or face “joint actions” that also involve Venezuela’s government.

Petro has described the ELN as “drug traffickers dressed up as guerrilla fighters.”

Colombian Interior Minister Armando Benedetti said that Petro and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed the ELN and its role in drug trafficking during a phone call that he said reduced tensions between the two leaders. According to Benedetti, the presidents discussed possible joint operations against the group. In an interview with Colombian radio station Blu, Benedetti said that “the issue (with the ELN) is that they need to be attacked when they retreat” into camps in Venezuela.

Peace talks suspended after Catatumbo offensive

The Colombian government suspended peace talks with the ELN last year after the group staged an offensive in the northeastern Catatumbo region that forced more than 50,000 people to flee their homes.

Officials in Colombia have since taken steps to weaken the group’s position in Venezuela, according to the Associated Press.

Background

The ELN was founded in the 1960s by students and union leaders inspired by the Cuban revolution. The group currently has around 5,000 fighters operating in Colombia and Venezuela, according to the Associated Press.