Tripoli— PM Abdulhamid Dbeibeh met US Senior Advisor for Africa Massad Boulos and both men discussed “opportunities for joint cooperation in the fields of energy, minerals, infrastructure, health, and communications,” according to a statement by the PM’s office.
Mr. Boulos, arrived in Tripoli this morning from Tunisia for a visit to Libya, the first by a senior US official since President Donald Trump assumed office in January. It remains to be seen if such visit would ever help in somehow reactivating the political process in the country.
Dbeibeh affirmed the Government of National Unity’s (GNU) “commitment to building economic partnerships with the United States, opening the way for major American companies to participate in development and investment projects,” it said.
On his part, Boulos said of the meeting “we discussed the importance of restoring calm, preventing violence, and advancing political dialogue as we work together to enhance US-Libyan cooperation that will benefit Americans and Libyans,” adding on his X platform “we look forward to advancing commercial deals between our countries.”
According to the GNU’s statement, its team presented a detailed presentation regarding a Libyan-US “strategic economic partnership” that is estimated at $70 billion including investment projects in the energy, minerals, electricity, infrastructure, oil and communications sectors.
“The meeting touched on developments in the Palestinian issue, with the PM expressing Libya’s strong condemnation of the crimes, starvation, and ongoing aggression being perpetrated against the Palestinian people in Gaza” by Israel.
Mr. Dbeibeh emphasized “the need for an immediate end to the aggression, lifting the blockade, and sparing civilians the ravages of war.
Mr. Boulos is scheduled to travel to Benghazi later today to meet with the Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Marshal Khalifa Haftar.
On Tuesday, Tunisia’s Foreign Minister Mohamed Nafti after holding a meeting with Boulos in Tunis stressed the importance of finding a Libyan-Libyan political solution under the auspices of the United Nations that preserves Libya’s security, stability, and territorial integrity, according to a statement published by the Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In the meantime, Mr. Boulos’ visit to Tripoli comes at a time of tense security situation in the capital despite a fragile truce. There are serious concerns about the outbreak of new clashes between the forces and militias affiliated with the GNU and the armed groups opposed to it in western Libya.
