Greek Foreign Affairs Minister George Gerapetritis and Taher Salem Al Baour, acting foreign affairs minister of Libya's Government of National Unity, declared the start of the process for the delimitation of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) between Greece and Libya at their meeting in Athens on Wednesday.
In a statement, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Lana Zochiou underlined that “ in this context, the first meeting of technical coommittees was held and it was agreed that the next meeting will take place in Tripoli,” the capital of Libya.
As the spokeswoman said, the visit of Salem Al Baour was a follow-up of Gerapetritis’ visit to Libya on July 15, during which the deepening of bilateral relations had been agreed.
The meeting’s agenda, Zochiou said, included the strengthening of cooperation in the migration sector. At this point, the foreign minister expressed Greece’s readiness to “ continue the provision of training Libyan Coast Guard officers.” In addition, the two ministers exchanged views on further strengthening bilateral relations in the sectors of economy, energy, transport, and construction, while “ they also expressed their readiness for the start of direct flights between Athens and Tripoli, and agreed on a Greek business delegation visit to Tripoli in the fall.”
On his side, Gerapetritis stressed the need for respect of International Law, Zochiou said, including the International Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and he “ reiterated the Greek and European stance relative to the invalid and unfounded Turkish-Libyan memorandum.”
Finally, she added, the Greek FM referred to Greece’s substantial contribution, as a European Union member state and elected member of the UN Security Council, in the efforts for “ a political solution, based on the unity, development, and stability in Libya.”