Several international financial institutions have praised the economic reforms introduced by former president Álvaro Uribe ( elected 7 August 2002 ), which include measures designed to reduce the public-sector deficit below 2. 5 % of GDP in 2004.

Soon after that, in May 2002, the former liberal politician of conservative leanings Álvaro Uribe, whose father had been killed by left-wing guerrillas, was sworn in as Colombian president.

Shortly after taking office, President Sarkozy began negotiations with Colombian president Álvaro Uribe and the left-wing guerrilla FARC, regarding the release of hostages held by the rebel group, especially Franco-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt.

* 1952 – Álvaro Uribe, Colombian politician, 39th President of Colombia

Former President Álvaro Uribe intensified military operations against the FARC-EP, seeking to defeat them.

For most of the period between 2002 and 2005, the FARC-EP was believed to be in a strategic withdrawal due to the increasing military and police actions of new president Álvaro Uribe, which led to the capture or desertion of many fighters and medium-level commanders.

In a televised speech, Colombia's U. S .- allied president, Álvaro Uribe, thanked Chavez for his efforts.

At 8 months old, the baby was removed from the area and Rojas didn't hear of the boy again until 31 December, when she heard Colombian President Álvaro Uribe say on the radio that the child was no longer with her captors.

Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, who had tense relations with Chavez, thanked the socialist leader and called for the release of all hostages.

' Timochenko ' announced the new commander in chief is ' Alfonso Cano ' After speculations in several national and international media about the ' softening up ' of the FARC and the announcement of Colombian President Álvaro Uribe that several FARC leaders were ready to surrender and free their captives, the secretariat of the FARC sent out a communiqué emphasizing the death of their founder would not change their approach towards the captives or the humanitarian agreement.

According to the Colombian government, FARC-EP had an estimated 6, 000 – 8, 000 members in 2008, down from 16, 000 in 2001, having lost much of their fighting force since President Álvaro Uribe took office in 2002.

However, after the failure of the peace process and the activation of Plan Colombia, Álvaro Uribe Vélez was elected President in 2002, starting a massive attack on terrorist groups, with cooperation from civil population, foreign aid and legal armed forces.

* Álvaro Uribe is elected President of Colombia in 2002, the first political independent to do so in more than a century and a half.

* Explosions went off near the parliament building as Colombia's President Álvaro Uribe was being sworn in, killing at least 10 people.

* Colombian president Álvaro Uribe declares state of emergency.

In 2003, President Álvaro Uribe came to the region and listened to the issues of the townspeople for 12 hours.

Pelosi publicly scolded Colombian President Álvaro Uribe during Uribe's May 2007 state trip to America.

In 2008, Colombian President Álvaro Uribe offered him Colombian citizenship because of his efforts towards peace in Colombia, including his participation in two concerts in 2008.

President Álvaro Uribe has offered 1, 000, 000, 000 pesos ( around 350, 000 euros, or 500, 000 USD ) for any information regarding the location of the persons responsible for her death.

In 2011, some 250 public figures ( head of state or government, cabinet ministers, ambassadors, heads or senior officials of international organization ) attended the annual meeting, including: Felipe Calderón, Robert B. Zoellick, Álvaro Uribe Vélez, Nicolas Sarkozy, Ban Ki-moon, Angela Merkel, N. Chandrababu Naidu, Ferenc Gyurcsany, François Fillon, Morgan Tsvangirai, Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Min Zhu, Paul Kagame, Queen Rania of Jordan, Dmitry Medvedev, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Kevin Rudd, Barney Frank, Kofi Annan, Werner Faymann, Leonel Fernández, Jacob Zuma, Naoto Kan, Jean-Claude Trichet and Zeng Peiyan.

After his father's death, Álvaro Uribe focused his political career and became a member of the center-left Colombian Liberal Party.

The administration of President Andrés Pastrana had failed for four years to secure a ceasefire, and Álvaro Uribe began to be seen as the candidate who may provide a viable security program.

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With the election of independent President of Colombia, Álvaro Uribe Vélez as president the Liberal party reached its greatest crisis ever.

In 2005 President Álvaro Uribe Vélez, who had been a critic of Pastrana's peace process with the FARC and had received criticisms from Pastrana regarding his negotiations with Colombian paramilitary groups, surprisingly offered the former president the post of Ambassador to the United States in Washington DC.

a psychiatrist, philosopher, and politician who is being investigated for his alleged role in the faking of the demobilization of a non-existent FARC front when he served as the 5th High Commissioner for Peace during the Administration of President Álvaro Uribe Vélez.

In 2005, Pabón left the Independent Democratic Pole, a left leaning coalition party which he himself had help found, among other reasons, Pabón was a strong supporter of the conservative leaning President Álvaro Uribe Vélez and believed that the Pole was taking " leftist radicalism of the maoist and procuban era.

Jorge Alberto Uribe Echavarría is not related to fellow medellinense President Álvaro Uribe Vélez, but the two are old friends.

During the second term of President Álvaro Uribe Vélez the government presented a tax reform to cut funding to the Law of Cinema, the president was criticized for this but the minister of Culture Elvira Cuervo de Jaramillo lobbied in the Ministry of Finance to impede this law from affecting the financial resources destined to Colombian cinema.

Because of his life's work and contribution to the country, President Álvaro Uribe Vélez honored him with the Order of Boyacá in the Rank of the Grand Cross, the highest civilian honour bestowed by the Republic of Colombia.