Colombian Senator Piedad Cordoba said Thursday that she, not Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, called Mario Montoya, head of Colombia's Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC), which led to the rupture of the government's negotiations with the nation's largest rebel group.
"That must remain very clear, I was the one who called general Mario Montoya," Cordoba said, referring to the telephone conversation upon which Colombian President Alvaro Uribe based his reasons for suspending talks with the FARC.
Cordoba, Uribe's special envoy to the FARC, explained that Wednesday she talked many times with Montoya to inform him of the advances gained in the peace negotiations and Chavez's opportunity to greet Montoya to ask him how many soldiers are being held as prisoners by the FARC.
"The Colombian government has all the rights. I cannot leave Venezuela without thanking Chavez for what he did, general Montoyacan testify I called him many times during that day, it must remain clear that I have to be polite and respect the decisions," Cordoba said.
Chavez had been invited by Colombia in August to broker a prisoner-hostage swap with the FARC.
Under the deal, the Colombian government was to release 500 imprisoned FARC members in exchange for 45 high-profile hostages.
Colombia canceled the mediation effort by Chavez on Wednesday because the Venezuelan leader directly contacted Montoya and asked him questions about the hostages, after Uribe had warned him earlier not to do so.
The FARC still has at least 50 "interchangeable" prisoners. Therebel group promised to hand over evidence by December that the prisoners are still alive.
Source:Xinhua
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