Western Hemisphere
The mediation of third countries or international organizations is the only possible way to restore confidence between Colombia and Venezuela, said in Washington Rafael Pardo, the Colombian Liberal Party's presidential candidate.

Bogotá's decision to resort to the UN and the OAS following the harsh statements made recently by President Hugo Chávez is positive, Pardo said, because bilateral confidence "is completely absent nowadays," AFP reported.

"We must try to rebuild this relationship through mediation mechanisms, either through third countries or ad hoc mechanisms set up by multilateral agencies," Pardo said in a debate held in the Inter-American Dialogue, a center for policy analysis, exchange, and communication on issues in Western Hemisphere affairs.