Tripoli, Addis Ababa sign African cooperation agreement

The Ethiopian Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday that Addis Ababa and Tripoli have agreed to maintain "firm" cooperation in monitoring African issues and intensifying bilateral cooperation.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi held talks with Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi on Sunday and Monday in the Libyan city of Syrte centered on bilateral relations and the border conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

The Ethiopian minister added that Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin, who accompanied Zenawi, signed with his Libyan counterpart Omar al-Muntasir cooperation agreements in economic, scientific, cultural and technical areas. The two countries also agreed to establish a joint committee.

Earlier, Eritrean President Assyas Afworki visited Syrte from Thursday until Saturday to take part in a mini-summit about the conflicts in Africa and discussed with Libyan President Moammar Gaddafi the Ethiopian - Eritrean conflict.

Upon arriving in Cairo on Tuesday, Zenawi held talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. The two sides agreed to intensify efforts to settle the border disputes between Ethiopia and Eritrea. On Wednesday Mubarak and Zenawi continued their talks at Sharm el-Sheikh resort on the Red Sea.