Cooperation agreements between Libya and Russia have been signed to enhance cooperation in the medical sector, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health Mohammad Haitham told Sputnik News Monday.
This came during a Libyan delegation visit to Moscow March 17-22, led by head of Libya’s High Council of State (HCS) Khaled al-Mishri, at the invitation of the Federal Council, Russia’s upper house of parliament, to discuss bilateral relations and means to tackle Libya’s ongoing political crisis.
The Libyan delegation included the undersecretary of the Ministry of Health, the director of medical affairs and the director of Libyan National Centre for Disease Control.
During the visit, both sides highlighted bilateral relations in providing basic needs of Libyan medical sector such as medical devices, managing hospitals and health centers, enhancing cooperation in the fields of medical science and research, and exchanging expertise, Haitham said.
He added that the total number of hospitals and medical facilities in Libya reaches 260, which has led to increasing the demand on equipment, tools, air conditioners, and medical gases.
The visit by Mishri, as head of the Tripoli-based body charged with advising the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA), indicates Russia‘s interest in a balanced policy on Libya.
“Russia favors any side that is capable of positively impacting Libyan developments… We are working to help Libya agree on a single policy and restore peace without intervention in its internal affairs,” Lev Dengov, head of the Russian Contact Group on Libya at the Foreign Ministry.
In February, Russian Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson Maria Zakharova declared that Moscow’s contacts with different Libyan parties to end the political conflict in the country were fruitful, stressing that Moscow intends to organize a comprehensive Libyan dialogue involving various parties.
Zakharova added the crisis can only be solved through a broad dialogue involving all parties, to ensure a “language of compromise” and to advance towards building state institutions.
