Abela meets with Libyan, Ethiopian leaders on fringes of Rome conference

 Prime Minister Robert Abela met with his Libyan and Ethiopian counterparts on Sunday, with recent initiatives involving Malta and the two North African countries on the agenda.

The bilateral meetings were held on the fringes of an international migration conference in Rome, organised on the initiative of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. 

In his meeting with Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, the two leaders discussed plans to develop an undersea interconnector linking Malta and Libya, the Office of the Prime Minister said.

“Abela noted that now it is important for technical discussions to take place, so that the project can move towards being implemented,” the OPM said.

Malta and Libya signed a Memorandum of Understanding in June pledging to develop a “renewable interconnector” linking the two countries. Few details about that ambitious plan have been divulged. 

Malta has also sought to strengthen ties to Ethiopia, with the two countries signing MOUs related to aviation and diplomatic training in May and holding talks on potential trade between the two countries.

Abela and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed shake hands. Photo: DOI

Those deals came months after Abela welcomed Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in Malta for a brief visit in February. 

The two leaders again met on the fringes of the Rome conference and discussed those MOUs and the aviation deal signed. In a tweet following the meeting, Abela described Ethiopia as a “key partner in Africa”.

Rome global conference

Abela also spoke at the international migration conference, and used his speech to emphasise the importance of treating Africa as an equal economic partner, with a relationship based on respect.

The summit convened by Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni laid the foundations for a fund to finance investment projects and support border controls, with a medium-term aim of better regulating migratory flows.

Opening the conference, Meloni said talks would focus on illegal and legal immigration, refugee support and "the most important... wide cooperation to support development in Africa".

The day of talks was the "start of a process" that would be followed with a donors' conference to finance investment projects and support border control, Meloni said, adding that no date had yet been set.

The United Arab Emirates pledged €100 million to that fund, Meloni said in a press conference following the conference.  

Abela emphasises economic cooperation

In his speech, Abela said economic cooperation between Europe and Africa was key to helping stem irregular migration flows, adding that countries also have a “moral duty” to act decisively against human traffickers and repatriate those who are denied asylum.

Abela poses for a group photo as part of the Rome conference. Photo: DOI

Abela urged leaders to focus on implementing the UN’s 2020 Sustainable Development Goals and said that setbacks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic should not stop world leaders from cooperating to achieve internationally agreed-on climate change targets.

That spirit of global cooperation could also be put to good use in tackling the migration crisis, he said.

Abela was accompanied on the trip by Labour MP Cressida Galea.