Updated

Cuba is offering Colombia 1,000 medical school scholarships to support a peace accord in which the South American country's largest rebel army will relinquish its weapons.

The scholarships will be distributed mostly to members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and those affected by the decades-long conflict.

Colombia's Cuban ambassador Jose Luis Ponce said Thursday that the move will help soldiers reintegrate into society. Some 200 scholarships for Cuba's renowned Latin American School of Medicine will be awarded annually for the next five years and will cover all costs except flights to Cuba.

State-owned Cubana de Aviacion said it would offer affordable tickets to scholarship recipients.