The latest round of peace talks to end the 50-year conflict between the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Colombian government have been stalled in a dramatic fashion, after an official FARC statement on Tuesday confirmed the kidnapping of General Ruben Alzate. Along with another military officer and a lawyer, Alzate was captured in rural Colombia during an inspection of a civilian energy project. Although FARC agreed to stop kidnapping civilians in 2012, they continue to target police and military officers.
The peace talks, held in the Cuban capital of Havana, were initiated in 2012 and the U.S. State Department condemned FARC's actions due to the large amount of work that has gone into the negotiations since they began. Colombian officials were prepared to fly to Cuba for a new round of talks when the FARC statement was released-Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos canceled the round a matter of hours after receiving the news. Santos then informed the FARC representatives in Havana that the General must be released before the talks can continue.
Pablo Catatumbo spoke on behalf of the FARC rebels and explained that, as far as FARC is concerned, a bilateral ceasefire is the condition of release, and such incidents-including the kidnapping of two Colombian soldiers last week-will continue unless the ceasefire is agreed upon. An official response to FARC's statement has not yet been released, but University of Miami professor Bruce Bagley reminded the media that Santos is in a particular predicament, as Alzate is the highest-ranking Colombian military officer that FARC has captured in the five-decade history of its conflict with the Colombian government.
In the meantime, Santos has informed the public that troops have been deployed to look for the captives; he has enlisted the help of the International Red Cross; and he has also called upon the support of the Norwegian and Venezuelan governments, as the two nations are facilitating the stalled peace talks.
