Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said that, if the FARC release their hostages, he does not rule out reaching a peace agreement with the leftist rebel group.
In an interview with RCN Radio President Juan Manuel Santos said if the FARC displays gestures of peace he would not rule out the reaching of “an agreement relatively soon.”
One such gesture “would be the freeing of the hostages that they are holding captive,” said the head of state. He reiterated that this must happen without conditions.
Santos said he would like to open dialogue with the guerrilla group “face to face, guerrilla to government.” But he did not want it to be an “international media show” which would “lead us nowhere.”
In a letter released by mediator Piedad Cordoba Tuesday, the Marxist guerrilla group said it was willing to release six hostages and was “exploring all avenues that could lead toward the unilateral liberation of the prisoners of war.”
The announcement came hours after demonstrations of Colombians and their supporters around the world demanding peace.