The Chief of Staff of the Algerian People’s National Army, Lieutenant General Said Chenegriha, pledged on Thursday to help Libya overcome its security and political crisis, the Algerian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Chanegriha met with the Chief of the General Staff of the Libyan Army, Lieutenant General Mohamed Al-Haddad, at the headquarters of the Ministry, the statement added.
During the meeting, the Algerian General stressed the importance of exchanging views on the developments in the region, and on bilateral cooperation to resolve problems.
“Our common history and the support of the Libyan people for the Algerian revolution require us to work to resolve the crises affecting the security of the region,” Chanegriha said.
Algeria and Libya share a 900km border that witnesses major security breaches, mainly the smuggling of weapons and drugs, the infiltration of militants and human trafficking.
Algeria has deployed soldiers and policemen on the border with Libya after an armed conflict started in the North African country in 2011.
Algeria considers itself as bearing the largest impact of Libya’s security crisis in the region. It has therefore launched efforts to bring together parties of the Libyan conflict.
It expressed willingness to help organize general elections in the country with the aim of ending the crisis.
Algeria also called on foreign and Western countries to stop their interference in Libyan affairs.
On Monday, Chanegriha made a working and inspection visit to units of the 4th Military Region in east Algeria.
He denounced what he described as “miserable” attempts to tarnish Algeria’s role and position in Africa.
The Algerian General implicitly referred to the turbulent situation in Mali and Libya. “We are aware of instability prevailing in Algeria’s neighboring countries and the repercussions on our security,” he said.
He stressed that his country always seeks to be a stabilizing factor in the region, and contributes to sustainable development in neighboring countries.
