Greece invites Libya to maritime zone talks to ease strained ties
The move is aimed at mending relations between the two neighbours, strained by a controversial maritime deal signed in 2019 between the Libyan government and Turkey, Greece's long-standing foe, which mapped out a sea area close to the Greek island of Crete.
"We invite - and I think you may soon see progress in this area - we invite the Tripoli government to discuss with Greece the delimitation of a continental shelf and an exclusive economic zone," Mitsotakis told local Skai television.
Greece this year launched a new tender to develop its hydrocarbon resources off Crete, a move that Libya has objected to, saying some of the blocks infringed its own maritime zones.
Law and order has been weak in Libya since a 2011 uprising that toppled dictator Muammar Gaddafi, with the country divided by factional conflict into eastern and western sections for over a decade.
Therefore, any communication with Libya was not easy, Mitsotakis said. He indicated that Greece was determined to continue talking to both the Tripoli-based government and a parallel administration based in Benghazi.
In recent months, Athens has sought closer cooperation with Libya to help stem a surge in migrant arrivals from the North African country to Greece's southern islands of Gavdos and Crete and passed legislation banning migrants arriving from Libya by sea from requesting asylum.
In an incident earlier this month, the European Union migration commissioner and ministers from Italy, Malta and Greece were denied entry to the eastern part of divided Libya, shortly after meeting the internationally recognised government that controls the west of Libya.
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'The POA will always support any initiative that will help protect our members,' a spokesperson for the trade union said. 'However, as welcome as this initiative is we need to address the reasons why prison officers need Tasers in the first place. 'Violence in our prisons is out of control and apathetic prison managers would rather put the prison regime before the safety of their staff. 'We urgently need action to address overcrowding, understaffing, drugs and the other root causes of prison violence.'
