CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) 鈥� Colombian President Gustavo Petro is visiting Venezuela on Friday for key talks on border security and trade with the country鈥檚 . The meeting, their first, comes months after the U.S. military and his wife from their home in January.
Colombia is lobbying to become a buyer of Venezuelan gas and last month sought an exemption from to invest in and natural gas ventures, which could include the reopening of a gas pipeline between the neighboring South American countries.
Petro’s administration also reached agreements with Venezuela’s state-owned oil company PDVSA to replace the pipeline in the Colombian section.
Petro and Rodr铆guez are also expected to discuss the presence of illegal armed groups and drug trafficking along their shared border.
鈥淭he United States has an interest in Colombia becoming the buyer of Venezuelan gas,鈥� said Ronal Rodr铆guez Dur谩n, a researcher at the Venezuela Observatory at the Universidad del Rosario.
鈥淐olombia, by virtue of its geographical nature, would become the client that could quickly bring revenue into Venezuela under U.S. supervision,” he added.
The topic was part of the conversation during the nearly two-hour meeting at the White House in February. Both said the talks were friendly 鈥� a dramatic about-face from weeks earlier, when Trump accused Petro of pumping cocaine into the U.S. and threatened his country with military action.
According to Petro, they discussed how to revitalize the Venezuelan economy with Colombia鈥檚 assistance, as well as the role of the U.S., which the Colombian leader said should 鈥渓ift sanctions鈥� on Venezuela.
The Trump administration is aiming to revive the Venezuelan economy by drawing foreign investment toward its vast natural resources, particularly oil, following years of decline under the Maduro government, which saw the country crumble and forced at least .
Petro’s leverage as mediator in Venezuela is limited
Ahead of Friday’s meeting, Petro announced that his delegation, which includes top military and police officials, will tackle border security with Rodr铆guez.
The focus remains on the , where rival armed groups fight for territorial control and Petro stressed the necessity of 鈥渃lose collaboration on intelligence,鈥� warning that without it, 鈥渂ombs land in the wrong places … and end up killing civilians.鈥�
Colombia-Venezuela ties have long been on the rocks. Petro did not recognize Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate president in the wake of the contested July 2024 elections that triggered protests, which sparked widespread repression. Still, he maintained diplomatic ties with Caracas.
Colombia’s government has said that the Petro-Rodr铆guez meeting on Friday aims to 鈥渃ontribute to a resolution of Venezuela鈥檚 political crisis.鈥�
However, it’s unclear how this can be achieved.
Rodr铆guez Dur谩n, the university researcher, said Petro鈥檚 leverage is limited regarding any potential mediation, given that his term ends in August. Future ties with Venezuela will likely also be influenced by who takes power next in Colombia.
Petro and Rodr铆guez were expected to meet last month at their shared border, but citing 鈥渇orce majeure,鈥� which they did not explain, and simply said it would take place at a later time.
Before that canceled meeting, several Venezuelan nongovernmental organizations had addressed an open letter to Petro, urging Colombia to contribute to the 鈥減romotion of democratic principles and human rights,鈥� including the release of 鈥渁ll political prisoners鈥� and an end to 鈥減ersecution.鈥�
___
Su谩rez reported from Bogota, Colombia.
___
Follow AP鈥檚 coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
