The meeting scheduled for this Friday between Colombian President Gustavo Petro and Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodríguez was suspended late yesterday due to “force majeure,” according to a brief joint statement issued by both governments.
The meeting had been scheduled to take place today, March 13, at the international bridge connecting the Colombian city of Cúcuta with the Venezuelan state of Táchira, a symbolic setting for the bilateral relationship between the two neighboring countries. Although no explanation has been provided, Colombia’s presidency said the meeting “will be rescheduled” for a date yet to be determined.
The cancellation occurred after logistical preparations for the event had already been completed and the press had begun accrediting to cover the presidential meeting. Following the suspension of the meeting between the heads of state, the Colombian government decided to maintain bilateral dialogue through a ministerial delegation that traveled to Caracas to address the agenda originally planned for the meeting between Petro and Rodríguez.
Colombia’s Petro–Delcy Rodriguez meeting suspended ‘due to force majeure’
Following the shift in direction of the Venezuelan government and its repositioning on the international stage, with the restoration of relations with the United States, the lifting of the oil embargo and the return of foreign investment to the country, Colombia and its neighbor had planned a historic meeting between their two presidents to normalize relations.
It should be recalled that Bogotá did not recognize the electoral victory of Nicolás Maduro in the disputed 2024 elections. As a result, although diplomatic and commercial relations were maintained, the two presidents never met again.
In this context, the meeting between Gustavo Petro and Delcy Rodríguez, scheduled for this Friday at the Atanasio Girardot International Bridge—an infrastructure linking the two countries—was intended to resume direct relations between the two leaders on either side of the Orinoco River. The choice of that location sought to symbolize the normalization process in relations between Colombia and Venezuela, which were restored in 2022 after several years of diplomatic rupture.
However, on Thursday night Bogotá and Caracas announced the cancellation of the presidential meeting. The official statement merely indicated that the meeting was suspended for “force majeure reasons” and would be rescheduled for a later date that has not yet been defined.
“The Governments of Colombia and Venezuela inform the public that a presidential meeting between the two Heads of State was scheduled to take place at the Atanasio Girardot ‘Tienditas’ International Bridge (Colombia) on March 13, 2026, with the purpose of continuing to strengthen the spirit of integration and brotherhood between the two nations and advancing initiatives for binational cooperation,” yesterday’s press release said.
However, the joint document adds that “due to force majeure reasons the two Governments have decided to postpone the presidential meeting to a near date.”
The lack of details about the reasons for the suspension generated confusion at the border. In Cúcuta, workers dismantled the installations prepared for the event while journalists and local authorities tried to confirm the decision. Neither government offered additional explanations about the reasons that forced the cancellation of the meeting.
Comunicado conjunto de los Gobiernos de la República de Colombia y de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela 👇 pic.twitter.com/zr7soBNJAj
— Cancillería Colombia (@CancilleriaCol) March 12, 2026
Bogota sends ministers to Caracas
Despite the suspension of the presidential meeting, the Colombian government decided to maintain the bilateral agenda at the ministerial level. Bogotá sent a delegation led by the Colombian foreign minister, accompanied by the ministers of Defense, Trade, and Mines and Energy, with the aim of meeting Venezuelan authorities in Caracas.
The talks between the ministers seek to address the same issues that were planned for the meeting between Petro and Rodríguez. These include security along the shared border, the fight against drug trafficking, the presence of irregular armed groups, energy cooperation, and the recovery of bilateral trade.
The ministerial meetings are conceived as a preparatory phase for a future meeting between the presidents. According to diplomatic sources, the objective is to advance technical and political agreements that would relaunch cooperation between the two countries while a new date is set for the meeting between Petro and Rodríguez.
So far, no official explanation has been offered regarding the causes that led to the suspension of the meeting. Some reports mentioned possible security reasons or last-minute disagreements, but none of these hypotheses has been confirmed by authorities in the two countries.
The cancellation coincided with a phone conversation held that same day between Petro and U.S. President Donald Trump, which fueled speculation in some media outlets about a possible impact on the Venezuelan decision. However, official sources consulted by the local press denied that there was a direct connection between the two events.
Trump advises Maria Corina Machado not to return to Venezuela
For his part, President Trump recently advised Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado not to return to Venezuela for the time being, citing concerns about her safety amid the country’s uncertain political transition. The advice was conveyed during a nearly two-hour meeting held last week at the White House, according to The New York Times, citing U.S. officials familiar with the meeting.
The meeting, which was also attended by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, confirms the Trump administration’s outreach to Venezuela’s interim president, following the capture of former president Nicolás Maduro and the installation of a provisional government that, led by Delcy Rodríguez, is redefining relations with the United States. In that context, Trump reportedly warned Machado that the situation in the country remains volatile and that her return could entail significant personal risks.
According to the sources cited by the newspaper, the White House’s recommendation reflects Washington’s concern about possible episodes of violence or instability while the next steps of the political transition are being negotiated. U.S. officials fear that the opposition leader’s immediate return could trigger internal tensions or reactions from sectors linked to the former regime.
Machado, winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her defense of democracy in Venezuela, has repeatedly expressed her intention to return to the country to participate in institutional reconstruction and in a possible electoral process. However, the position of the U.S. administration suggests that Washington prefers a gradual and controlled transition before key opposition figures return to Venezuelan territory.
Trump’s recommendation also highlights the complex relationship between the White House and the leading figure of the Venezuelan opposition. Although Machado has publicly praised the role of the United States in the Venezuelan crisis, the U.S. administration has chosen to maintain a certain political distance while seeking to ensure stability during the transition period.