Meeting to discuss return of CEN-SAD and AU Bureau to their headquarters in Tripoli
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The deputy minister of Foreign Affairs for International Cooperation and Organizations, Omar Ketti, Saturday discussed with the Congolese Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Claude Gakosso, ways of returning the General Secretariat of the Community of Sahelo-Saharan States (CEN-SAD) and the Office of the African Union (AU) to their headquarters in Tripoli.
In 2019, the CEN-SAD headquarters in Tripoli was transferred to N'Djamena, Chad, due to the insecurity that has prevailed in Libya since the fall of the former regime in the wake of the 17 February revolution.
Ketti received Gakosso on Friday evening in Tripoli where he arrived from the eastern city of Benghazi.
Mohamed Hassan al-Labbat, Director of Cabinet of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, said a statement issued Saturday by the Libyan Foreign Ministry. Omar Ketti told his interlocutor that Libya was looking forward to the African Union playing a greater role and intensifying the visits of African countries' leaders to Libya.
He was also counting on their support for the return of the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD) Executive Secretariat to its headquarters in Tripoli, in addition to transferring the African Union Office to work from the Libyan capital instead of Tunisia as soon as possible to facilitate communication between the Libyan state and the African Union Commission.m
He commended the role of the African Union in general and the African Union High Level Committee on Libya in particular, chaired by Denis Sassou Nguesso, President of the Republic of Congo.
The Libyan deputy minister conveyed to Gakosso and the accompanying delegation greetings of the minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Najla al-Mangouch, and her wishes that this visit would lead to positive results, especially in the area of national reconciliation and assistance to the Libyan side in the upcoming elections.
Gakosso expressed his thanks for the warm welcome, stressing that he would convey to President Denis Sassou Nguesso, Chairperson of the African Union High Level Committee on Libya, the concerns of the Libyan side, particularly in the area of national reconciliation and assistance in the conduct of elections, in cooperation with the African Union Commission.
Welcoming the positive developments he witnessed during the last two visits, compared to the previous ones, the Congolese minister explained that "if this indicates anything, it is the sincere desire of all Libyan parties to establish security and stability and bring Libya back to its previous era in the African space".
-0- PANA BY/JSG/SOC/BBA/RA 27Nov2021
