Panafrican News Agency

Libyan Prime Minister ends participation in Italy-Africa Summit

Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The Libyan Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity, Abdulhamid al Dbaiba, Monday ended his participation in the Italy-Africa Summit held in the Italian capital, Rome.

The meeting, held on 28 - 29 January, discussed several issues of economic cooperation and infrastructure, in addition to food security, energy security and transformation.

The participants included Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) and representatives of the European Union (EU).

On the sidelines of the summit, Mr. al Dabaiba met with a number of heads of state, foreign ministers and representatives of international organizations, along with the Minister of State for Communication and Political Affairs and the Deputy Minister of Oil and Gas.

In his speech, the Libyan prime minister stressed the need to move towards a development approach aimed at promoting relations with the countries of the African continent, noting that Africa's importance lies not only in the fact that it is a continent rich in various natural and other resources.

Mr. al Dbaiba called for a move away from a security-based approach to relations between Europe and Africa, pointing out that there were other approaches to solving the problems of migration and political and security stability.

He held a number of meetings and discussions on the sidelines of the summit, notably with his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, during which they discussed ways of pursuing cooperation between Libya and Italy on economic issues, particularly those relating to oil and gas energy and intra-African trade.

Mr. al Dbaiba and Mrs. Meloni also reviewed developments in the activation of the Treaty of Friendship between Libya and Italy and supported the efforts made by the committees appointed by the two countries to resume work in accordance with the terms of the agreement and implement the projects undertaken by Rome as soon as possible in Libya.

On the sidelines of the summit, the Libyan prime minister discussed with the Rwandan Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Vincent Biruta, ways of strengthening economic cooperation and activating the economic agreements signed between the two countries.

They also reviewed Libyan investments in Rwanda in addition to supporting and developing their territories.

During his meeting with the Chadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohamed Saleh Nadhif, he also discussed aspects of cooperation between Libya and Chad, the situation in Sudan and Niger, the situation of Libyan investments in Chad and how to provide the necessary facilities to pursue them in Chad under positive conditions.

Mr. al Dbaiba met the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, to discuss ways of launching the Libyan-European strategic dialogue on migration issues, as well as cooperation mechanisms between Libya and Europe in the field of clean energy.

He also held a discussion session with the United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees for Operations, Raouf Mazo, to discuss the issue of irregular migration and the related refugee issue, agreeing on the need to strengthen cooperation between the UNHCR and Libyan institutions.

The prime minister also held parallel meetings with a number of African leaders, including the President of Tunisia, Kais Saied.

-0- PANA BY/JSG/SOC/BBA/RA 30Jan2024