ALGIERS – Monday, 18 July 2022 (APS) – President of the Republic Abdelmadjid Tebboune affirmed Monday, in Algiers, that the joint statement of the 4th Algerian-Italian Intergovernmental Summit institutes a new phase in an increasingly effective bilateral cooperation and outlines relations between the two countries.
In a statement to the press following the inking of several bilateral cooperation agreements with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, President Tebboune welcomed the positive results of the 4th Algerian-Italian Intergovernmental Summit, pointing out that important agreements were signed in various fields, in addition to the joint statement which will “institute a new phase in the increasingly effective bilateral cooperation and outline relations between the two countries, wiling to strengthen their deep historical ties.”
President Tebboune expressed warm welcome to Draghi who is on a visit to Algeria for the second time this year, which shows, he said, “our countries’ willingness to strengthen the friendship ties and intensify the fields of cooperation,” affirming that this visit “is meant to be a further step towards the establishment of strategic relations, and is part of the continuous consultations between the two countries.”
President Tebboune underlined that he discussed with the Italian Prime minister “bilateral issues and issues of common interest in the Maghreb region, to which we attach a particular importance with our Italian friends.”
The meeting was an “opportunity to exchange views on various regional and international issues in light of unstable situation and its repercussions on the regional and international stability and security, and its clear threat on the global food security, notably in Africa and particularly in the Maghreb,” said President Tebboune, pointing out “the importance of a joint action to participate and contribute positively to the establishment of peace and security in our Mediterranean region.”
“We have noted a total convergence of views on major issues and on the situation in Libya,” added President Tebboune, reaffirming “the necessity for the Libyans to achieve the objective of building their institutions by themselves, through a fair election of their representatives that will be chosen by the Libyan people, far from any foreign interference and friction.”
The two sides exchanged views on the situation in Mali and the Sahel, where the emphasis was placed on the importance of the cooperation for “the implementation of the peace and reconciliation agreement stemming from Algiers process and the strengthening of the role of the UN mission in Mali (MINUSMA) in order to ease the tension in the region,” added President Tebboune.
As regards the issue of Western Sahara, President Tebboune affirmed “the convergence of views with the Italian friends on the support of the personal envoy of the UN Secretary General and the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), considering its role in the settlement of this conflict.”