The Venezuelan government named Ivan Rincon as its new ambassador to Colombia, replacing Gustavo Marquez, who held the post before the socialist nation severed ties with its neighbor in late July.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro made the announcement during a visit to Tachira state, which borders Colombia. Maduro said the Venezuelan government will await Colombia’s approval of the appointment.
Maduro also thanked former Ambassador Marquez for his work and “great determination during difficult moments in the relations between Colombia and Venezuela.”
Rincon, who served as president of Venezuela’s Supreme Tribunal of Justice, has held the post of Venezuelan ambassador to the Vatican since May 2005.
Venezuela and Colombia have been working at repairing relations broken on July 22, after the government of Colombia’s then-President Alvaro Uribe presented allegations of a guerrilla presence in Venezuela to the Organization of American States.
Chavez extended an olive branch to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos following the new leader’s August 7 inauguration, and the two have committed to work at normalizing relations.
The two countries set up five bilateral commissions to resolve long-standing issues, particularly in terms of security, border control, and trade between the two countries.