Venezuela, Colombia agree to reestablish embassies from August 7

Venezuela and Colombia will reestablish diplomatic relations at an ambassadorial level when leftist president-elect Gustavo Petro takes office in Bogota on August 7, representatives of the South American neighbours said.

Relations between the two countries were broken in 2019 after Colombian President Ivan Duque refused to recognize the reelection of his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro.

Duque instead backed the claim of opposition leader Juan Guaido to be Venezuela's acting president.

Colombia was one of around 60 countries to do so, having rejected Venezuela's 2018 presidential election that was boycotted by the opposition.

Venezuela's minister of foreign relations Carlos Faria hosted Colombia's foreign minister-elect Alvaro Leyva in San Cristobal, the capital of Tachira state on the border between the two countries.

Maduro called the three-hour meeting "successful" and said the diplomats had discussed the border's "progressive, economic and commercial opening" as well as "peace and security plans" for the frontier, among other topics.

Petro, Colombia's first ever elected left-wing president, had said on the campaign trail that he would reestablish diplomatic relations with Venezuela once in office.

Embassies and consulates in both countries were closed, and flights between the neighbours grounded.