Mallia meets Libyan interior minister over fuel smuggling

Fuel smuggling from Libya was on the agenda during a meeting held yesterday between the Libyan interior minister Saaleh Abdurraheem Maaziq and home affairs minister Manuel Mallia.

In recent months, large amounts of fuel was smuggled from Libya to Malta while angry motorists queue in Tripoli and the state oil firm struggles to deliver due to a lack of security at petrol stations.

In June, the Libyan government said the smuggling to Malta was increasing, adding that it was a “threat” to Libya’s national security.

During the meeting, the two ministers discussed a number of issues including increasing security at the Libyan borders to address migration and the smuggling of goods.

They also spoke about increased cooperation in the training of security forces and the issuing of passports and visas.  

Saaleh Abdurraheem Maaziq was accompanied by a number of government officials who will be holding a series of bilateral talks in the coming days.