A ceremony was held today at Mitiga airport to mark the resumption of direct flights between Rome and Tripoli by ITA Airways.
The resumption comes after more than ten years and is part of a constant and collective effort by Italian institutions and the business system, with the aim of strengthening ties with Libya, which is a strategic and privileged partner for our country. Italy and Libya are working side by side to build an increasingly structured dialogue to address common challenges, ranging from security to sustainable growth, from the fight against irregular immigration to industrial agricultural development.
Italy is Libya’s leading trade partner, with over EUR 9 billion in total trade in 2023, being the third largest exporter (after China and Turkey) and the largest importer into the country. The Italian government has recently increased the number of scholarships for Libyan students, which with 110 students per year is the highest number in the entire Italian diplomatic network.
The ceremony was attended by the Secretary General of the Foreign Ministry, Amb. Riccardo Guariglia; the Libyan Minister of Transport, Mohamed Shahoubi; the President of the Civil Aviation Authority, Mohamed Shlebik; the President of ENAC, Di Palma; the President of the Italian-Libyan Chamber of Commerce, Nicola Colicchi, and representatives of ITA Airways.
The ceremony was preceded by a bilateral discussion with the Acting Foreign Minister of Libya’s Government of National Unity, al-Taher al-Bahor, during which Amb. Guariglia stressed the importance for Italy of all-round bilateral cooperation and full support for the United Nations’ efforts to revitalise the political process and reopen a prospect of stabilisation and institutional reunification.
