Maltese foreign minister in talks on oil smuggling with Libyan authorities
Maltese foreign minister Carmelo Abela was in Tripoli on Tuesday for talks with Presidency Council head Faiez Serraj on relations between the two states. The involvement of Maltese figures in the smuggling of oil from Libya is reportedly to have been one of the main issues of discussion, according to Hadi Fornaiji of the Libya Herald.
According to the PC’s media office, it was agreed to expand the exchange of information about smuggling operations.
Two Maltese men, Darren Debono and Gordon Debono, have been arrested by the Italian authorities and are currently being held in Sicily accused of involvement in a mafia smuggling ring illegally shipping Libya oil to Italy and elsewhere. It is reported they helped provide fake Maltese documentation,
The Maltese foreign ministry has just completed an internal inquiry into the affair.
The PC statement also said that Serraj stressed the importance to Libya of its relations with Malta while Abela, who became Malta’s foreign minister in a cabinet reshuffle in June, expressed Malta’s full support for the PC and its government of national accord and for Serraj’s efforts to resolve the Libyan crisis.
The corresponding statement by the Department of Information in Malta did not mention oil smuggling at all.
DOI said Malta is ready to once again have a resident ambassador in Libya, Foreign Minister Carmelo Abela said when visiting the country.
During the aforementioned visit Minister Abela reiterated Malta’s unwavering support to the Government of National Accord and that Malta remains available to offer its assistance to the GNA to help re-establish peace and prosperity in Libya. Minister Abela emphasised the importance of a Libyanowned and Libyan-led inclusive and representative political process, centred on the amended Libyan Political Agreement.
To this effect, the minister noted the compromises that have been achieved so far between the House of Representatives and High Council of State, and urged the two delegations to successfully conclude discussions under the auspices of the UN to make the UN’s strategy and action plan a success.
Matters which are of mutual interest to both countries were also discussed and to this effect, both parties reaffirmed the long-standing bilateral ties between the countries, and committed themselves to strengthen and enhance further these relations.
Minister Abela expressed Malta’s wish to have a Maltese Resident Ambassador present in Tripoli once again, in order to make cooperation and assistance more effective, efficient and tangible.
Malta had withdrawn its ambassador in the wake of continued violence in the Libyan capital.
The Libya Herald also quoted Abela as saying that a new Maltese ambassador would be appointed soon to replace Mannie Galea who has now returned to his architectural practice.