Prime Minister Conte with Prime Minister Abdelaziz Djerad

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January 16, 2020

Diplomatic mission for the Italian Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, who flew to Algiers this morning. The premier was greeted on arrival at Houari-Boumediene international airport by the prime minister, Abdelaziz Djerad and the secretary of state responsible for the national community and overseas competencies, Rachid Bladehane. During the visit, Conte had talks with Djerad and with the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

Conte's appeal
Prime Minister Conte, from Algiers, made a new appeal for the ceasefire to last: "We cannot accept other military troops - he said - this is the time for dialogue and confrontation. We must rely on diplomacy and dialogue that they are more effective than weapons and options
military. Italy is engaged in intense diplomatic action to ensure that the window of opportunity offered by the Berlin process is effective. "

Libya first point
This visit "is part of the international community's efforts to limit the conflict in Libya and find a lasting solution and will allow representatives of the two countries to continue and deepen their consultation on the Libyan crisis, but also on regional and international issues of common interest" , the Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs says in a statement.

"It should be stressed that Algerian diplomacy is particularly engaged in the Libyan question and has made intense efforts for several weeks in order to create favorable conditions for an effective revitalization of the inter-Libyan dialogue and the peace initiative of the Nations. These efforts also have contributed to the ceasefire observed on the ground, "added the same source.

Watch out for open files
The visit of the Italian Prime Minister to Algeria "will also offer the opportunity for the representatives of Italy and Algeria to examine the open dossiers and put into perspective the main bilateral deadlines to come, in particular the next session of the bilateral high-level meeting, which will be held in Algiers in the first half of this year. " During the press conference at the end of the summit with the Algerian president, Conte, speaking of the political transition taking place in the country, said he was impressed by how the population carried out their requests in a peaceful way.



Count on facebook
"Just arrived in Algiers, at work to strengthen our bilateral relations and to face the Libyan dossier again ahead of the Berlin conference". Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte writes it on Facebook, posting a video of his arrival at the airport, welcomed by the picket of honor and the prime minister, Abdelaziz Djerad.



The Turkish presence
Meanwhile, the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has announced that Turkey will start "exploration and drilling activities" in the Mediterranean in the areas covered by the agreement on the demarcation of maritime borders with Libya, as foreseen by the agreement with Libya, in 2020 ".

In Libya to ensure the security of Turkey
Erdogan has returned to talk about Libya also about sending Turkish troops. "We are sending our military to strengthen Libya's stability and maintain a legitimate government. We will do everything to ensure Turkey's security, even outside our borders," he said.

On 27 November, the Turkish president signed two memoranda of understanding with the Libyan government of Fayez al Serraj: the first concerning Turkish jurisdiction in the eastern Mediterranean, the second concerning military cooperation, troop training, up to sending Turkish soldiers. Last week Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an appeal for a ceasefire in Libya starting Sunday.

Waiting for the Berlin Conference
For the Berlin Conference of 19 January, rumors are chasing about confirmed and denied presences and absences of the leaders who are holding the Libyan dossier. From the United States, several sources write, including the pan-Arab newspaper al Sharq al Awsat, the Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, will surely arrive, and could be accompanied by the National Security Advisor, Robert O'Brien. A clear signal from Washington that he still wants to have a say in Libya. From Berlin, writes Al Jazeera, the presence of the two main architects of the truce in force since last Sunday is confirmed: the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

And again: the Egyptian president, Abdel Fattah al Sisi, will be at the table, despite the disagreements with Ankara. The UN will be represented at the highest level with the intervention of the secretary general, Antonio Guterres. There are still no official confirmations from Libya on who will fly to Germany. Both the president of the government of national agreement, Fayez al Serraj, and his opponent, the general of Cyrenaica Khalifa Haftar, have been officially invited by the German Foreign Minister, Heiko Maas.

At European level, obviously, Italy, the great sponsor of the Conference, is expected to participate with the Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte. Chancellor Angela Merkel will do the honors of the house and will probably receive, among others, the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson. The EU High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, will certainly not miss, as will some members of the African Union. The new Algerian president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune and the new Tunisian president, Kais Saied are also expected from the region. There will also be China, increasingly present in Africa.