On Tuesday, Libyan Foreign Minister, Najla Al-Mangoush arrived in Tehran on a historic visit. This marks the first high-level contact between the two nations in years.
Al-Mangoush was received by her Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian for talks aimed at improving bilateral ties, according to Iran’s Fars News Agency.
The visit is seen as a significant step in the internal developments in Libya in recent years.
The two top diplomats had previously discussed the development relations, and regional and international developments in a telephone call a few months ago. They pledged to improve bilateral relations in the past few months, with Libya elevating its diplomatic representation in Tehran from Chargé d’Affaires to Ambassador.
Months ago, Tehran announced its intention to reopen its Embassy in Libya, with a diplomatic delegation sent to Tripoli. Currently, the Iranian diplomatic mission in Libya is headed by Ainollah Souri, who has worked in several Iranian embassies.
Iranian shipping resumed operations in Libya, with the first Iranian ship docking in the port of Misrata after a suspension of nearly a decade.
Souri hopes to raise the level of bilateral relations between Iran and Libya to the level they enjoyed in the past, particularly in the economic and trade sectors.
According to Souri, Libya has “warmly received the Iranian embassy in Tripoli, and a series of meetings have been held between the two sides.”
Previously, Iran and Libya had discussed arrangements for the return of the Iranian embassy and the activation of a joint economic committee to enhance bilateral relations.
In 2011, all foreign embassies in Libya, including the Iranian embassy, were closed due to protests against the regime of Muammar Gaddafi.