BOGOTA, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos announced Tuesday peace negotiations with the rebel Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia (FARC) will begin in October in Oslo, Norway, with the aim of putting an end to the country's armed conflict.
The peace talks with the FARC, the country's largest armed guerrilla group, "will start in Oslo in the first half of October and then continue in Havana," Cuba's capital city, Santos said in a televised speech.
Santos said the peace talks were the result of a signed agreement between the two sides that outlines where the talks will be held, what issues will be discussed and what obligations each side must fulfill.
The issues to be negotiated with the FARC included rural development, guarantees that the rebel movement will be able to transit into a political opposition force, an end to armed conflict, rebel ties to drug trafficking and the rights of victims of the armed conflict, said Santos.
All of these issues need to be addressed "to attain a definitive end to the conflict and to progress in the construction of a stable and lasting peace," he added.
"This agreement does not mean we already have peace or a final agreement, it is a roadmap that precisely defines the terms of the talks for reaching that final accord," said Santos.
He added that as part of those terms, Cuba and Norway will " continue to serve as hosts and guarantors," while Venezuela and Chile will "accompany" the process.
Santos said that unlike previous attempts at ending armed conflict, there will be no cease fire this time, with Colombia's military continuing to target rebel strongholds.
Also, the talks will not go on "indefinitely," said Santos, adding "If there is no progress, we will simply not continue."
The FARC entered peace talks with the government before, most recently in 1999 with then President Andres Pastrana. Soon after those talks began, Pastrana unveiled in 2000 the U.S.-led Plan Colombia, securing 1 billion U.S. dollars in mostly military aid to fight rebels and drug traffickers. Talks sputtered on for three years before ending in 2002 with no agreement.
Soon after Santos' announcement, FARC leader Rodrigo Londono Echeverri, alias "Timochenko," held a press conference in Havana confirming the start of talks.
FARC was established in 1964 by marginalized peasant farmers.
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