Colombian Government Announces Peace Talks with the FARC Rebel Group

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said in a television address on Monday that he and the Colombian government have been in recent discussions with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in a bid to east tensions and seek peace with the guerrilla army, which is comprised mostly of Colombian peasants.

The FARC is estimated to number approximately 9,000 fighters and is responsible for a number of attacks that have taken place in Colombia over the years and up to the present, including one on Sunday in a rural area of the country in which a car bomb killed six people, including two children.

The Colombian government in June secured a "peace framework" law that would provide amnesty to leaders of the rebel force. Santos is said to be working on this legal transaction through "exploratory talks" with the FARC.

"In the coming days the results of the conversations with the FARC will become known," Santos said during his television address.

The last time efforts were made at creating peace between this group, the government, and Colombian civilians, Colombia ceded a significant piece of land in the southern part of the country to the FARC. However the peace efforts ended up failing and falling through and the rebel fighters continued their attacks, particularly those on politicians and security forces.

As a result, Colombia organized a United States-backed military "buildup" between 2000 and 2010. This partnership caused major setbacks for FARC causes. In retaliation the group has since increased attacks as well as coordinated the sabotage of many oil and coal mines throughout the country.

As far as the current peace plans go, Santos has made it clear that regardless of the events that may take place during the process, military operations will remain "on every single centimeter of national territory," as reported by Fox News.

"We will learn from the errors of the past in order not to repeat them," the Colombian president said.