Νέο ξεκίνημα για Βενεζουέλα - Κολομβία ; (Associated Press)

Βενεζουέλα και Κολομβία είναι γνωστό ότι δεν έχουν τις καλύτερες των σχέσεων. Πρόσφατα μάλιστα, οι σχέσεις των 2 χωρών έφτασαν σε πολύ τεταμένο σημείο. Οι ηγέτες των 2 χωρών αποφάσισαν ή τουλάχιστον προσπαθούν να δείξουν δημόσια ότι όλα αυτά ανήκουν στο παρελθόν. Με ποιον τρόπο θέλουν να επιτύχουν κάτι τέτοιο; Βελτιώνοντας τις σχέσεις μεταξύ τους και αυξάνοντας την οικονομική τους αλληλεπίδραση. Η είδηση μας έρχεται από το Associated Press.

Leaders of Colombia, Venezuela seek improved ties

"CARACAS, Venezuela. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Colombian counterpart Juan Manuel Santos agreed Tuesday to strengthen ties through energy projects as they sought to improve relations and leave behind recent bitter disputes. They agreed to resurrect plans for a natural gas pipeline stretching from Venezuela to Central America and also revived a proposal to build an oil pipeline from Venezuela's oil fields to Colombia's Pacific coast.

Venezuela's state oil company will resume fuel sales to Colombian border states and Chavez invited Colombian oil company Ecopetrol to seek a deal to pump oil in Venezuela's crude-rich Orinoco River basin.

"We've begun to build these relations," Chavez said after spending more than three hours with Santos during the Colombian leader's first visit to Venezuela since taking office Aug. 7.

The agreements in energy, trade and other areas came after Chavez and Santos agreed in August to restore full diplomatic relations that had been severed as Santos' predecessor, Alvaro Uribe, prepared to leave office. Santos and Chavez have since pledged to repair trade relations undermined by years of accusations and mutual distrust.

Santos said the two countries have turned a corner.

"We've gone from good-intentioned statments to concrete accords," he said.

Santos said earlier, before his meeting with Chavez, that although Caracas and Bogota have had their differences, "we need to work together."

"We will be brothers forever," Chavez said of the two nations after receiving Santos at the presidential palace, where a military band played both national anthems and soldiers in colonial-era uniforms stood at attention."

Διαβάστε όλη την είδηση στο Associated Press.