Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Wednesday that he discussed the situation in Libya with US President-elect Joe Biden, adding that Italy has always prioritized the issue in its foreign policy
ROME (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th December, 2020) Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Wednesday that he discussed the situation in Libya with US President-elect Joe Biden, adding that Italy has always prioritized the issue in its foreign policy.
Conte made these remarks during the traditional year-end press conference held in the capital of Rome.
"During a lasting conversation with Biden, I emphasized the importance of the Mediterranean region and the Libyan dossier for the US," Conte said, adding that Italy seeks to create "united, independent Libya, independent of foreign interference."
The prime minister stressed that the situation in Libya always remained high on the Italian foreign policy agenda. According to Conte, the political crisis in the country could be settled only through negotiations and diplomacy.
"The Libyan crisis has always been in the center of our scenarios, our foreign policy. We have never stopped paying constant attention to this priority dossier toward the country's stabilization, overcoming military logic and foreign interference," Conte said, noting that "problems are not solved through combat offensives. There is always room for dialogue and diplomacy."
Libya has been split between two rival administrations since its longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown and murdered back in 2011. The western part of the country is controlled by the UN-backed Government of National Accord headed by Fayez al-Sarraj, and the eastern part by Libyan National Army's Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. In October, a ceasefire agreement was signed in Geneva by the Libyan rival parties that planned to hold general elections on December 24, 2021.
