Greece and Libya’s UN-recognised government have agreed to hold talks to resolve a long-running dispute over their respective exclusive economic zones in the Mediterranean Sea, Athens said Wednesday.
The Greek foreign ministry said the agreement came during a visit to Athens on Wednesday by Libya’s foreign minister Taher Salem Al Baour.
“The two ministers announced the start of the process for the delimitation of the Exclusive Economic Zone between Greece and Libya,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Lana Zohiou said in a statement.
After the first session on Wednesday, the next meeting is set to be in Tripoli, the Libyan capital, she added.
Libya angered Greece in 2019 by signing a maritime delimitation agreement with Turkey, which Athens argues disregards the rights of Greek islands.
Greece this month sent the United Nations a letter, rejecting Libya’s claims to date, which stretch over areas south of Crete that Athens has earmarked for hydrocarbon exploration.
The north African country is still plagued by division and instability after years of unrest following the NATO-backed uprising that toppled longtime leader Moamer Kadhafi in 2011.
It remains divided between the UN-recognised government in the west and its eastern rival, backed by military commander Khalifa Haftar.
Source: AFP
