The Venezuelan government will extradite at least four members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and National Liberation Army (ELN) detained in Venezuela, W Radio reported Nov. 17. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos is expected to make an announcement regarding the prisoner transfer later Nov. 17. The announcement comes a day after Santos announced that suspected Venezuelan drug trafficker Walid Makled will be extradited to Venezuela in 2011. A deal appears to be in the works between Bogota and Caracas in which the Venezuelan government had to make serious concessions to insulate itself from damaging testimony by Makled. Though the United States vied with Venezuela for Makled's extradition, Santos said he would honor Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's extradition request since it was made before the U.S. request. Without going into details, Santos said Makled will face additional criminal charges besides drug trafficking. He also said Venezuela's extradition request would require approval from the Colombian Supreme Court, and that the extradition process could take 6-18 months. Santos did not specify when that process would begin. Makled, a Venezuelan citizen believed to have been born in Syria, was captured by Colombian security officials Aug. 19 with assistance from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. He is a highly valuable bargaining chip for the Colombians. In 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama listed him as one of the world's most-wanted drug kingpins under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. In sustaining his expansive drug-trafficking network, Makled is believed to have been deeply involved in money-laundering rackets with a number of senior Venezuelan officials. Much of these illicit funds are suspected of financing the operations of the Colombian guerrilla groups FARC and ELN, which sought refuge in Venezuela's borderlands with Colombia. According to a STRATFOR source, Makled sought to protect himself by keeping recordings of his transactions with Venezuelan officials. This would explain Caracas' adamant demands for Makled's extradition, as his testimony could be used in U.S. courts to indict Venezuelan officials on drug-trafficking, money-laundering and possibly even terrorism charges. In trying to stymie any blowback from within his regime, Chavez has sought to reassure those who have remained loyal to him, including recently promoted Gen. Henry Rangel Silva, that they will remain insulated from the Makled threat. To make those assurances credible, Chavez needs Makled on Venezuelan soil. Santos's decision to grant Chavez's wish came at a high price. The Colombian government apparently deemed it more worthwhile to use the Makled extradition to extract concessions quietly from the Chavez government rather than to elevate the issue by extraditing Makled to the United States. Had Colombia adopted the latter course, Venezuela would have faced the threat of legal attacks against high-ranking Venezuelan officials that could destabilize the regime. The U.S. and Colombian governments have been working closely on the Makled issue and appear to be on the same page so far in how to deal with the Venezuelan government. This may explain why the United States has kept quiet on the Santos announcement on the Makled extradition to Venezuela. The Venezuelan extradition of FARC and ELN rebels to Colombia is the first public sign of Caracas' conceding to Bogota to clamp down on the Makled threat. Over the past few months, Venezuela quietly closed down FARC and ELN camps and has flushed many of the rebels back across the border into Colombia to try to sway Bogota toward returning Makled to Venezuela. Moreover, according to a Nov. 16 El Universal report, some $280 million have been paid back to Colombian firms, and the Venezuelan government has acknowledged approximately $400 million worth of additional debt owed to Colombia. Colombia has long pressed Venezuela to repay debts owed to Colombian businessmen. Considering the lengthy extradition process, the potential for the Colombian Supreme Court to reject the extradition request and for Santos to go back on his word, Venezuela is in the uncomfortable position of having to yield to Colombian demands without a firm guarantee of Makled's extradition. And considering the close U.S.-Colombian collaboration on this case, Venezuela must contend with the likelihood that any of the intelligence garnered from Makled by Colombia will be shared with the United States — and could be used against the Venezuelan government down the line. Still, the stakes are too high for Venezuela to risk a loss to the United States in this extradition battle. And this means the Venezuelan transfer of captured FARC and ELN rebels are likely a mere glimpse of what the Chavez regime is prepared to concede behind the scenes.