ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah in Istanbul on Friday for a summit centered on addressing migration, enhancing cooperation, and supporting Libya’s political stability.
A statement issued by Meloni’s office following the closed-door session said the three discussed strengthening cooperation in the Mediterranean region, starting with the management of migration flows.
Meloni praised the “excellent results achieved” through collaboration with Turkey on migration control, saying that the lessons learned from working with Ankara should be used to support the Libyan Government of National Unity’s efforts on migration, according to a statement by her office.
Erdogan stated that “long-term and sustainable” solutions were needed to eliminate the root cause of migration, according to a statement from his office.
Libya is a dominant transit point for migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East. Drowning incidents near the country’s coast have been common. In December, at least 61 migrants, including women and children, drowned off the town of Zuwara on Libya’s western coast.
The Italian prime minister also reaffirmed Italy’s commitment “to Libya’s stability, unity, and independence,” and its support for a Libyan-led, United Nations-facilitated political process leading to elections.
The Turkish presidential statement said the three leaders would reconvene to evaluate decisions taken, following lower-level technical meetings.
Oil-rich Libya plunged into chaos after a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. In the disarray that followed, the country split into rival administrations in the east and west, each backed by rogue militias and foreign governments.
Turkey has been allied with the Tripoli-based government in the west, but has recently taken steps to improve ties with the eastern-based government as well.
In 2019, Turkey reached an agreement with the Tripoli-based government which delineated maritime boundaries between Libya and Turkey, angering Greece and Cyprus which say the agreement infringes on their rights.
