Libya vows to boost bilateral ties with Sudan

November 26, 2011 (KHARTOUM) — The head of Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) pledged to develop political and economic relations with the Sudan after the fall of Gaddafi regime after reiterating his gratitude to the support received from Khartoum.

Mustafa Abdel-Jalil was in Khartoum for two days (Friday and Saturday) to attend the convention of National Congress Party headed by President Omer al-Bashir. The Libyan leader was received by the Sudanese president and was celebrated in the Sudanese capital for relieving Sudan from the “harmful” Gaddafi.

“Libyan people gave to the Sudanese people the greatest gift because they rid Sudan of Gaddafi and his regime,” said Bashir adding that the harm caused by Gaddafi and his regime was more destructive than the harm from colonial states.

Speaking at the closing session of the NCP convention, Abdel-Jalil said bilateral relations between the two people improved remarkably during the revolution when Sudan contributed to their fight to overthrow Gaddafi. He disclosed that Sudanese weapons were smuggled through Egypt and reached west of Libyan capital Tripoli.

The head of new Libyan regime further said that bilateral relations, based on the shared values of Islam and Arabism, will witness more development in the different fields. He unveiled the intention of his government to construct roads connecting the two countries and to improve telecommunications with Khartoum.

Abdel-Jalil hailed the Sudanese president’s efforts to improve relations between Libya and Niger which received many officials of Gaddafi’s regime. He announced the establishment of two new consulates in Kofra and Benghazi, as first concrete step to boost ties.

Last October the head of the NTC announced the intention of the new Libyan rulers to establish a democratic regime but also an Islamic system.

“We are an Islamic state,” he said, and he pledged to get rid of regulations that did not conform to Islamic law, Abdel-Jalil stressed.

Khartoum sees the emergence of “Islamic” regimes in Libya and Tunisia — where an Islamist party won the elections after the Tunisian revolution — as a good thing they can exploit to polish the image of the regime.

The presence of the Libyan leader at the convention of the ruling National Congress Party was a good opportunity to present the party as supporter of the forces of change in the region.

Following a meeting with the visiting Libyan head of state, Nafie Ali Nafie expressed Sudan’s readiness to provide the new regime with its experience in the field of organization and post conflict management.

Khartoum announced that Sulaf Al-Deen Saleh, Sudanese commissioner of Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration will lead a military delegation to help the revolutionaries to organize the Libyan army and integrate the different militias formed during the fight against the former regime.

(ST)