In a protocol event, President Petro received the credentials of the Venezuelan diplomat in virtue of the resumption of the political and commercial ties he vowed since his electoral campaign.

Plasencia arrived in Colombia August 28 and, in statements to Prensa Latina, he expressed that “Venezuela and Colombia are two pivotal countries within the Latin American concert, with a natural projection. Both nations have been center of cooperation, exchange, union, and integration.

Plasensia assured ties between the two nations are a fundamental pillar for growth, security, peace and the good future for Latin American and the Caribbean.

On the same day, Armando Benedetti, Colombian ambassador to Caracas, traveled to Venezuela and was received by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

In February 2019, President Nicolás Maduro announced the decision to break political and diplomatic relations with Colombia, blaming the former President Iván Duque administration (2018-2022) for supporting aggressions against the Bolivarian nation, in league with the United States and the Venezuelan extreme right.

In August 11, Maduro appointed former foreign minister Felix Plasencia as ambassador to Colombia, in view of the reestablishment of bilateral relations; and that same day, Petro appointed Benedetti as ambassador to Venezuela.

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