The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will travel to Tunisia on Sunday with the leaders of Italy and the Netherlands for talks with President Kais Saïed centered on the issue of migration and the economy, announced Thursday. his spokesperson.
“A cooperation agreement in the fields of economy, energy and migration will be at the center of the discussions”, specified Eric Mamer. “The fact that the president is going to Tunisia accompanied by the Dutch leaders Mark Rutte and the Italian Giorgia Meloni is in itself a sign that a constructive dialogue is underway with the Tunisian authorities,” he stressed.
“I did not say that an agreement will be reached, but it will be at the center of the discussions,” he insisted. “The purpose of this trip is to address all facets of the relationship with Tunisia within the structured framework of this agreement,” explained the spokesman.
Tunisia is in difficult talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to obtain a new loan of two billion dollars, but President Saïed refuses the recommended reforms providing for the restructuring of more than 100 heavily indebted public companies and the lifting of state subsidies on certain commodities.
Ms. Meloni paid an official visit to Tunisia on Tuesday and her talks with President Saïed focused on the migration issue and the country’s economic situation. Many migrants leave Tunisia to reach Italy, the gateway to the EU. Ms. Meloni defended support for Tunisia in the fight against human trafficking and illegal immigration with a program including funding, including resettlement aid.
The subject is being discussed on Thursday by EU interior ministers meeting in Luxembourg to try to adopt a reform of the European bloc’s migration policy. Giorgia Meloni had also pleaded for an agreement between the IMF and Tunisia, considered “fundamental for a strengthening and a full and complete recovery of the country”.
Tunisia is experiencing a serious socio-economic crisis and the opposition denounces a decline in rights and freedoms since President Saïed assumed full powers in July 2021.
