US removes terror designation for Colombia’s FARC

WASHINGTON

The US is revoking the designation of the Revolutionary Forces of Colombia (FARC) as a foreign terror organization, the State Department said Tuesday.

The FARC formally dissolved and disarmed after a 2016 peace deal with the Colombian government.

It no longer exists as a unified organization that engages in terrorism or terrorist activity or has the capability or intent to do so, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

"The decision to revoke the designation does not change the posture with regards to any charges or potential charges in the United States against former leaders of the FARC, including for narcotrafficking, nor does it remove the stain of the decision by Colombia’s Special Jurisdiction of Peace, which found their actions to be crimes against humanity," he said.

The delisting came days after the fifth anniversary of the peace deal Bogota signed with the former guerilla group.

The deal brought a cease-fire after more than five decades of armed conflict between FARC guerrillas and the government.

Under the deal reached in Cuba, rebel leaders and government negotiators agreed on the creation of a new political party, which was renamed the Common People's Party or the Comunes for short, and a political future for the left-wing group.

The delisting will facilitate the US' ability to better support implementation of the accord, including by working with demobilized combatants, added Blinken.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said last Wednesday that Colombia has a "moral obligation" to advance the peace agreement.