(AFP PHOTO / MAHMUD TURKIA)
Prime Minister Hazem El-Beblawi met Friday with Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan to discuss cooperation and relations between both countries, according to a cabinet statement released the same day.
Zeidan stated that the abduction of the Egyptian embassy workers in Tripoli was an isolated event that neither country would allow to negatively impact relations between them.
He added that Libya and Egypt are both in “a state of revolution, which means a lack of security and an inability to give safety guarantees. However, what we can guarantee is that we will exert every possible effort to protect members of the Egyptian embassy,” and other diplomatic missions in the future, in a statement by the Libyan cabinet.
The Egyptian cabinet stated that Libya is currently attempting to persuade leaders of African nations to reconsider the suspension of Egypt’s membership in the African Union (AU), especially after the success of the first stage of Egypt’s transitional roadmap.Zeidan stated that Libya is planning reconstruction projects and intends to benefit from Egyptian experience by meeting with Egyptian Housing Minister Ibrahim Mahlab and representatives of Egyptian contracting firms.
=The Libyan cabinet statement assured that there are two conferences to encourage investment between the two countries under preparation in both Egypt and Libya.
Zeidan stated that “ there is a high demand for Egyptian labor in Libya, but needs special arrangements to regulate migration, residence, and contracts that guarantee their rights,” according to the Libyan Cabinet.
Both countries also emphasized the importance of controlling the border, which has become a hub for arms trafficking since 2011.
Zeidan met with Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy on Wednesday and is scheduled to meet with interim President Adly Mansour and Defence Minister Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi during his visit, according to state-run Al-Ahram.
The visit came after the release of six Egyptian embassy workers by their unknown kidnappers in Tripoli as a Libyan rebel leader was released, although Egypt’s Foreign Ministry has denied allegations of a “prisoner swap”.
