Colombia and Venezuela recall ambassadors amid border crisis

chika ebuzor

August 28, 2015 7:58 AM

Venezuela and Colombia each recalled their ambassadors to the other country on Thursday, amid a diplomatic crisis sparked when socialist-run Venezuela closed two border crossings and deported over a thousand Colombians.

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Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro shut the crossings last week after a shootout between smugglers and troops wounded three soldiers. He later extended the closing indefinitely and has characterized the deportations as a crackdown on paramilitary gangs.

"I have favored dialogue and diplomacy and I will keep doing so, but I cannot allow Venezuela to treat Colombia and Colombians this way," the center-right Santos said in Bogota.

"These families aren't paramilitaries, they are humble families," Santos said. "And they were thrown out, as they said to me, like dogs."

Shortly after Santos' announcement recalling Colombia's ambassador, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez said on Twitter that Maduro had ordered the recall of Venezuela's ambassador to Bogota.

chika ebuzor