Venezuela appoints former foreign minister Plasencia as ambassador to Colombia

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said he has appointed former foreign minister Felix Plasencia as ambassador to Colombia and will continue to rebuild relations with the country. The announcement comes days after the inauguration of Colombian President Gustavo Petro, who has expressed his intention to normalize diplomatic relations with Venezuela, broken since 2019.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said he has appointed former foreign minister Felix Plasencia as ambassador to Colombia and will continue to rebuild relations with the country.

The announcement comes days after the inauguration of Colombian President Gustavo Petro, who has expressed his intention to normalize diplomatic relations with Venezuela, broken since 2019. "Venezuela asked for the approval of Colombia's Foreign Ministry and soon Ambassador Felix Plasencia will be in Bogota, a man of great diplomatic experience," Maduro said.

The Venezuelan leader added that Vice President Delcy Rodriguez will be in charge of designing a plan to reopen Venezuela's border with Colombia and boost trade and investment with its neighbor, without giving details. Venezuela and Colombia share more than 2,500 kilometers of border.

Caracas broke off relations with Bogota in early 2019 after members of the Venezuelan opposition tried to cross from Colombian territory with trucks loaded with food and medicine. Maduro's government said the aid masked an attempted coup by the opposition with support from Washington.