Libya's Transport Minister Muhammad Salem Al-Shahoubi Tuesday urged Turkish companies to return and take part in the reconstruction of the country, which has felt the brunt of armed conflicts since 2011.
Al-Shahoubi met with Turkey's Ambassador to Libya Kenan Yılmaz at the Maghreb country’s Transport Ministry, according to a ministry statement.
He asked Turkey for help lifting the no-fly zone over Libyan airspace while discussing many issues with Yılmaz related to relations between the two countries, the statement said.
The Libyan minister called on companies from Turkey to return to Libya to play a role in rebuilding the country.
Libya has recently witnessed positive developments following a breakthrough in which rival parties agreed Feb. 5 on a unified new executive authority that will govern Libya in the lead-up to national elections Dec. 24.
Libyans hope the new government will end years of civil war that have engulfed the country since the ouster and killing of strongman Moammar Gadhafi in 2011.
The country is one of the early markets for Turkish construction contractors who have undertaken $29 billion (TL 239 billion) of contracting works in Libya so far and seek a fair share of the $10 billion projects to be implemented in the country after the almost 10-year civil war in which all investments and infrastructure projects were halted.
In April this year, the head of Libya’s interim government Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibah paid a two-day visit to the capital Ankara, providing new opportunities for Turkish businesses in the oil-rich North African nation.
Accompanied by large delegations, Dbeibah and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held broad talks and negotiations on ways to further strengthen bilateral relations.
The series of meetings included discussions over concrete steps to improve investments, bilateral trade and economic relations.
Erdoğan and Dbeibah oversaw the signing of five agreements, which included the construction of electricity plants in Libya.
The two countries last year signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) allowing Turkish developers to finish their incomplete business projects.