|
Rome, June 1 (IANS) Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and his Libyan counterpart Abdul Hamid Dbeibah announced that the two countries will work together on illegal immigration and renewable energies.
"Italy stands with Libya and supports it during this complex transition: the concrete implementation of a ceasefire, the removal of mercenaries and foreign soldiers, and the creation of an institutional structure," Draghi said at a joint conference with Dbeibah here on Monday.
If all goes well, this process should culminate with elections and "a process of national reconciliation" by the end of the year, Xinhua news agency quoted the Italian premier as saying.
Other European countries will be a part of this effort, he said.
As part of its commitment, Italy will help build hospitals and send medical staff, and also take in "several dozen Libyan child cancer patients" for treatment in Italy, Draghi said.
Libya is a "large-scale energy partner" of Italy in terms of fossil fuels "but we also want to start cooperation in the field of renewable energies", he added.
Draghi said the two leaders also discussed "humanitarian and migration issues, the fight against human traffickers, refugee aid, humanitarian corridors, and the development of rural communities".
"Italy intends to continue financing voluntary repatriations as well as humanitarian evacuations from Libya."
For his part, the Libyan Prime Minister expressed his satisfaction at the "excellent bilateral relations" between the two countries, which are "reinforced by mutual goodwill".
"We will tackle illegal immigration together, along with other European countries, and the countries of origin of the illegal immigrants."
"The immigration problem cannot be solved in the Mediterranean alone, but should be tackled by going to the roots of the problem, which is not just a Libyan or Italian responsibility, but a common one," he added.
Dbeibah said Libya wishes to "increase trade relations (with Italy) and to work on renewable energies as well as the country's reconstruction".
"Italy could play an essential and primary role as an investor in Libya," he said.
--IANS
ksk/
Copyright and Disclaimer: All news and images appearing in our news section, search engines and social media are provided by IANS. If you face any issues related to the content/images, please contact our news service provider directly. We are not liable/responsible for any content/images related to the news service provider.
|
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
