Milton Rengifo: “Solutions must be sought for Venezuela, but not through imposition or force”

One of the priorities of Colombian diplomacy since Gustavo Petro came to power, a year and a half ago, has been to normalize relations with Nicolás Maduro's Venezuela, which were completely broken in 2019. The person in charge of piloting that purpose as ambassador In Caracas, Milton Rengifo, describes the break decided by the Government of Iván Duque as “an irrational action”, in this interview granted at the ambassador's residence, Quinta Colombia, an old coffee plantation that is one of the icons of Chacao, one of the most affluent sectors of the Venezuelan capital.

The reestablishment of relations was one of the early achievements of the Petro Government, who has already met with Maduro five times.

The reopening of the extensive and porous border of more than 2,200 kilometers is underway, commercial exchange is slowly picking up and air reconnection between Bogotá and Caracas is also advancing.

Colombia has played a role in Chavismo's difficult negotiations with the opposition, which are seeking a way out of the prolonged Venezuelan political crisis.

Venezuela, for its part, is one of the countries guaranteeing peace talks with the ELN guerrilla.

Despite the new era, which seeks to overcome years of irreconcilable differences, there are still scars.

The diplomatic headquarters on both sides suffered abandonment.

“When I arrived, my predecessor, Armando Benedetti, had already invested some resources and we continued the process of recovering the facilities that were quite deteriorated.

Now it works well,” says Rengifo about Quinta Colombia.

He aspires to open the doors of the diplomatic headquarters to host more cultural events.

“The consulate facilities in Chacaíto are also being adapted and modernized,” adds the diplomat.

Ask.

Venezuela once had 15 Colombian consulates, what is the reopening process going on?

Answer.

Caracas, San Cristóbal, San Antonio and Maracaibo have opened.

At the time of the breakup of relations, the departure was untimely.

The Registry's identification devices, files, and vehicles were left piled up in the Chacaíto building.

Time has been spent sorting through the files, boxes and boxes.

Locative repairs have been made.

The consulates have been opening progressively, and we are doing well.

I don't know if all 15 can be opened, which is the president's instruction.

The Foreign Ministry has already identified that three consulates should be opened in western Venezuela: Guasdualito or El Amparo, Puerto Ayacucho, and Atabapo.

It is an area with a very high presence of Colombians.

We are committed to moving forward with the peace process, and we need to build a State on the borders.

Q.

How many Colombians must they serve?

How has the process of reactivating that consular muscle been?

A.

There is a gray area that has to do with migration accounts.

How many Colombians left in the two waves of migration?

We do not know.

The statistics are quite precarious.

Calculations have been made of two million, there has been talk of eight million.

I don't think we are more than two and a half million at this moment, but we don't have data.

Colombians should register at the consulate, but they don't.

We are organizing a pilot with DANE to have an approximate.

Q.

Venezuela is a guarantor country in the process with the ELN, and has hosted negotiation cycles.

Has it played a constructive role at the dialogue table?

A.

When they were here, I was at the opening and closing, but not beyond.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Peace depends directly on the Presidency.

As in any negotiation, there have been divergences, distances, conflicting points of view, but the role of the guarantors, not only from Venezuela, but also from Norway, has been very important to maintain the dialogue.

I have visited General [Vladimir] Padrino and other senior Army officers, also civil authorities, the vice president and President Maduro.

Everyone repeats a phrase that I believe is true, and that I heard from Chávez: the peace of Colombia is the peace of Venezuela.

I have seen them very interested, since they are also affected by our violence.

In Venezuela the military establishment weighs a lot, and for them it is very important to control and maintain sovereignty over their territory.

In Colombia, the central State does not fully control the territory, especially the borders.

Q.

Does the Venezuelan Government recognize the presence of the ELN on this side of the border?

Many observers already consider it a binational guerrilla.

R.

To what extent is the ELN present here?

We do not know.

I have been in Táchira, I have asked, I have looked, and, if they are there, they are not perceived.

Officially, they show concern here, but that presence is not recognized.

Q.

The governments of several countries in the region have criticized the disqualification of the opposition member María Corina Machado in the presidential elections. Does Colombia also reject that disqualification?

A.

I have a precise instruction from Foreign Minister [Álvaro] Leyva and I cannot refer to that issue.

He handles that directly.

There is a negotiation process underway there.

On Thursday it was leaked that Jorge Rodríguez, leader of the Venezuelan Government at the dialogue table, has met with Juan González, a very important official in the White House.

The Barbados agreement was signed but negotiations continue, as President Maduro himself announced this week.

In this regard, the only thing I can affirm, since I am fully convinced, because I have seen it here, is that all sectors should recognize Chavismo or Madurismo and related political aspects, as a political reality.

That would trigger positive effects going forward, but some refuse that recognition.

We have also said that Venezuelans solve Venezuela's problems, we simply accompany them.

What has impressed me?

The spirit of dialogue, of building amid differences, of moving forward.

The ambassador of Colombia to Venezuela, Milton Rengifo Hernández, in Caracas, Venezuela on February 2, 2024Gaby Oraa

Q.

Does the Venezuelan opposition expect Colombia to be a mediator to find a way out of the political crisis?

A.

We have always had a space there.

Foreign Minister Leyva was present at the signing of the Barbados agreement.

Proximity, historical and commercial ties are very important.

Turning our backs on Venezuela was a strategic error, not only for the Colombian elite, but for many countries in the region.

Breaking off relationships was an irrational action.

We still do not fully know the impacts, but at least 350,000 jobs were lost in Colombia.

We have a role to play in our neighborhood.

Q.

Does the return of sanctions to Venezuela impact the normalization of relations?

A.

Of course, that script is flawed.

Did that decision affect Maduro?

It affected the United States itself, that volume of migrants is explained by that erratic decision.

It seems to us that, in addition to being a violation of international law, it has really affected ordinary people, including the two or three or four million Colombians who live here.

In general, almost all countries with a [diplomatic] presence in Venezuela reject this type of unilateral measures.

We must look for other types of solutions, but not through imposition or force.

That was already tried, and it failed at the time.

Q.

Avianca has just reopened the Bogotá-Caracas route after seven years.

How did you receive that news?

R.

Imagine, it is very positive.

With barely 700 million dollars in exchange [they reached more than 7,000 in 2008], for example, Cúcuta revived.

The Minister of Commerce, Germán Umaña, speaks of a reduction in absolute poverty in Cúcuta.

I just came from San Cristóbal, the border has another face.

Arturo Calle, Chocorramo have arrived in Venezuela, the largest companies in Colombia are asking about the conditions to enter.

It is more difficult for us now, since Türkiye, India, and China are already here.

The first thing is to build trust.

Q.

Colombia is the main host country for the Venezuelan diaspora.

What is the position that Caracas has conveyed to you regarding the policy of reception and migratory flexibility that Bogotá has maintained?

A.

They have not raised it publicly or officially, but the institutional design that was made in Colombia to welcome the diaspora is accepted.

The way in which health was strengthened, above all, the Erasmo Meoz hospital in Cúcuta, those in Maicao, Guainía, Arauca.

Speaking of commercial flights, there is a request for a Bucaramanga-Caracas frequency, to be able to attend to the flow of Venezuelans coming and going for health services.

In general terms, the response has been very positive.

Q.

Is Colombia still considering buying back a majority stake in Monómeros?

A.

If you ask me, I would say yes, we should buy it.

But that does not happen through the ambassador, it is a decision of the Government.

I have recently suggested it to the president, because of the impact it has.

The agenda is open to address bilateral issues that were left unaddressed.

There are possibilities to raise that and other issues.

The Neighborhood Commission addresses everything, transportation, consular matters, security and defense... That shows the type of relationship that exists, of trust.

Q.

And is Colombia contemplating buying gas from Venezuela?

A.

Yes, we are on that.

We have a margin, but we must be prepared.

Part of the gas consumed by Colombia is being brought from abroad, from Houston, United States, at a high price.

This is the second or third country in proven natural gas reserves in the world.

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