Tunisia, Libya call for Maghreban summit

Tunisian and Libyan heads of state, Zine El Abidine Bin Ali and Muammar Gaddafi, called for a Maghreban summit the soonest and renewed their attachment to the Arab Maghreb Union as a historical gain and an irreversible strategic choice for the construction of a unified Arab Maghreb without borders.

In a joint statement released Monday at the end of a visit this June 3-4 to Tripoli by the Tunisian president, the two heads of state stressed the need to intensify dialogue and contacts between all parties to safeguard the union.

For the two Maghreban officials, the union --mustering Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia-- should seek an appropriate formula to resume activities of its institutions and structures and enforce agreements and programs to consolidate the region's potentials and serve its peoples.

The two north African countries argue that UMA should consolidate dialogue with other groupings, including the European Union, so as to make of the Mediterranean basin an area of peace, stability and fruitful cooperation between northern and southern countries.

At the bilateral level, Tunisia and Libya decided to bring the level of their trade to an annual one billion dollars, set up a free-trade area, carry out major joint projects and create joint ventures.

The two heads of states called the Libyan Arab investment company to play a more important role in financing joint projects and decided to set up joint companies for the production and exporting of agriculture products, open immediately an air link between the two countries and set up a Libya-Tunisian TV channel.