by Stefania Fumo
ROME, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Italy and France appeared to have recovered their entente after a bilateral meeting on the crisis in war-torn Libya between French Foreign Minister Jean Yves Le Drian and his Italian counterpart, Enzo Movaero Milanesi, here on Friday.
Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini has accused France of covertly supporting General Khalifa al-Haftar, who on April 4 launched a military offensive against the United Nations-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) of Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj. France has rejected that accusation.
In Rome on Friday, Le Drian said in a televised press conference with his Italian counterpart that "our relations with Italy hit a rough patch, but today we have overcome those difficulties".
"There can be no military solution to the Libya crisis," Le Drian said, adding that "no progress is possible without a solid French-Italian entente."
"The Libya crisis can become very dangerous, so it is important to draw a line," Le Drian added.
For his part, Moavero Milanesi said that "the situation in Libya worries us....our absolutely shared position is that a cease-fire must be reached as soon as possible. This is to be followed by a humanitarian truce and a return to the (negotiating) table, which can only be that of the United Nations."
Italy supports the Sarraj government and is the former colonial power in Libya, where its ENI oil and gas giant operates the Mellitah oil and gas plant in a 50/50 joint venture with Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC).
Italy opened an embassy in Tripoli in 2017, and has a 300-member military task force stationed there.
The other big European player in the troubled North African country is France, which has oil assets in eastern Libya where Haftar has his stronghold.
"In-depth discussion on Libya," France's Le Drian tweeted. "We share the same realization: the need for an immediate cease-fire followed by a resumption of the political process."
Le Drian, who is in the Italian capital through April 22, explained on Twitter that his visit takes place "in a climate of mutual trust and respect. We will discuss bilateral and European issues, Libya, the Western Balkans, and China".
The latest escalation of violence in Libya, which has been in turmoil since the ousting of former leader Muammar Ghaddafi in 2011, has displaced more than 27,000 people in the past two weeks, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Thousands more remain trapped by ongoing fighting in their neighborhoods, and the numbers are growing daily, OCHA said in its latest report dated April 18.
According to UNICEF children's agency, nearly 1,800 children in Libya are among civilians who urgently need evacuation from areas under frontline fighting, 7,300 children have already been displaced from their homes by the raging violence, and an estimated 500,000 children are being affected by violence across western Libya.
