Italian PM to Visit Tunisia Next Week, Discuss Illegal Immigration

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (EPA)
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (EPA)
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Italian PM to Visit Tunisia Next Week, Discuss Illegal Immigration

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (EPA)
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (EPA)

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is scheduled to visit Tunisia next week at the invitation of President Kais Saied.

Political observers believe the visit will address several thorny issues between the two nations, including illegal immigration from the shores of Tunisia towards the Italian coasts.

Tunisian presidency announced that Saied discussed the distinguished bilateral relations and the strategic ties between Tunisia and the European Union over the phone with the Prime Minister.

Observers also expect the visit to address Saied's initiative to hold a high-level conference between all countries affected by the migration issue.

The initiative includes countries in North Africa, the Sahel, the Sahara, and the northern shore of the Mediterranean. It aims to tackle the causes of irregular migration and identify appropriate ways to end the resulting humanitarian crisis.

Meanwhile, Tunisian Foreign Minister Nabil Ammar hailed Italy's understanding of the need to support the economic recovery ongoing in his country.

Ammar was speaking Friday night during a ceremony marking Italy's National Day at the residence of Italy's ambassador to Tunis.

The top official also thanked Italy for all its efforts to explain Tunisia's viewpoint to other countries regarding negotiations for a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

He described Italy's backing of Tunisia on this point as "intelligent and constructive," saying it is a position that reflects Rome's insistence that the IMF finances the Tunisian economy to avoid collapse.

Last May, Meloni called on the International Monetary Fund during the G7 Summit in Japan to adopt a "pragmatic" approach to disburse financing to Tunisia without preconditions.



Humanitarian Corridors and Pauses Needed in Sudan, US Envoy Says

The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)
The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)
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Humanitarian Corridors and Pauses Needed in Sudan, US Envoy Says

The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)
The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)

More and faster aid deliveries are needed in Sudan, the US special envoy to the war-weary country told Reuters, ideally through the implementation of humanitarian corridors and pauses as discussed with government leaders in a visit on Sunday.

"We are pleased that there has been some progress, but we need to see much more," Tom Perriello said in an interview, following the approval of flights to hunger-striken South Kordofan and the extension of permission to use the Adre border crossing into Darfur by the Sudanese army.

The army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been locked in a 19-month conflict that has caused acute hunger and disease across the country. Both sides are accused of impeding aid deliveries, the RSF by looting and the army by bureaucratic delays.

Proposals including humanitarian corridors and pauses were shared with Sudanese sovereign council head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and others on a trip to Port Sudan on Monday and progress was made, Perriello said.

In October, the sovereign council approved flights into Kadugli to provide assistance to rebel-held regions of South Kordofan state, where people have gone hungry without aid deliveries, through an agreement with the South Sudanese government.

"I think if we can see that same attitude on the ability to get corridors into places like Khartoum, Omdurman, El-Gezira, al-Fasher, Sennar I think we could get a lot of life-saving aid to some of the most desperate Sudanese," he said.

In a speech on Tuesday, however, Burhan cast doubt on the speed of progress.

"Our vision is clear to all those who want to help us. The war must stop first and the rebels must leave the areas they have occupied," he said.

"Once civilian life is back, relief can return and be available to all Sudanese," he added.

US-led efforts to bring the army and RSF to the negotiating table have not succeeded so far.

"We do remain in active lines of communication with RSF leadership on the negotiations around both humanitarian access and peace," Perriello said.