Italy shares sea migrant problem with Libya – Minister

Italian Defence Minister Elisabetta Trenta on Tuesday said both Italy and Libya share the problem of migrants seeking to reach Europe via the Mediterranean Sea as she met with the prime minister of the Libyan UN-backed government in Tripoli.

“Trenta said that Italy is a transit country like Libya as migrants do not want to stay in it when they arrive,’’ the media office of Prime Minister Fayez Serraj said in a statement following their talks in the capital Tripoli.

According to the statement, she stressed Italy’s support for security and stability of Libya, national reconciliation and the democratic process in the country.

Serraj said that security should be stepped up on Libya’s southern border, where migrants flow into the country and then try to travel to Europe via the Mediterranean Sea.

He called on Italy to support his country’s request to partially lift a ban on the delivery of arms to Libya in order to face terrorism and support guards of oil facilities.

“The two sides discussed means of cooperation in combating illegal immigration and supporting the Libyan navy and coastguard.

“Also by providing them with necessary equipment,’’ Serraj’s spokesman, Mohamed Sallak, told a news conference following the talks.

According to Sallak, Italy shows understanding for Libya’s opposition towards the establishment of refugee camps on its lands.

Libya descended into chaos in 2011 after Dictator Moamer Gaddafi was toppled in an armed revolt and has since become a major transit route for migrants trying to reach Europe by sea.