Tunisian president stresses need to resume Maghreb building process

Tunisian President Zein al-Abidin Bin Ali stressed Monday the need to resume the Maghreb building process and activate structures of the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA).

Following a meeting on Monday in Tozeur (southern Tunisia) with Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi, who arrived Monday in Tunisia for a "brotherly and rest stay," the speaker of the Tunisian presidency said development of the Lockerbie affair was the main topic reviewed during the talks between the two heads of state.

The construction of the Arab Maghreb Union which groups Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia is frozen in view of Algeria's direct involvement with the Polisario movement, which claims the independence of the southern Moroccan provinces.

The Lockerbie affair is also one of the reasons behind the freezing of the integration process, as Libya blames the other UMA countries for abiding by the UN sanctions enforced against it.

The Tunisian Foreign Ministry announced in a statement that the visit comes at the invitation of Tunisian President Zein al-Abidin Bin Ali.

Tunisian diplomatic sources expected bilateral talks between the two leaders tacking relations between the two countries as well as increasing bilateral commercial and economic cooperation.