President Nicolás Maduro’s government made two further attempts to repair its relations with regional neighbours this week, announcing a prisoner exchange with the US and hosting a meeting between the Colombian government and the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN) guerrilla group. The Venezuelan actions delivered political dividends to US President Joe Biden, who was able to announce the release of seven prisoners widely viewed as hostages, and to Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro, who moved one step closer to his objective of “total peace” with the announcement that formal peace talks with the ELN would restart. Yet the ultimate reward for Maduro – a lifting of international sanctions on Venezuela – remains a long way off. End of preview - This article contains approximately 596 words.
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