MOSCOW: Libya s prime minister flew to Russia to meet with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Thursday for a second round of talks in three months aimed at improving gas and oil investment as well as military ties between both countries. Since dismantling its nuclear weapons program in 2003, Libya has opened itself up to foreign investment, and Russian energy companies have joined the rush to capitalize on opportunities in the North African country, which is a major producer of oil and gas. We would like to achieve bigger volumes in investment cooperation between Russia and Libya in the oil and gas sectors, Libyan Prime Minister Al-Baghdadi Ali Al-Mahmoudi said in televised comments after arriving in Moscow. Putin promised to do all we can to secure a favorable climate for Libyan investment in Russia. The premiers also confirmed that Libya is interested in buying arms from Russia, local news agencies reported. Russia was a major supplier of arms to Libya during the 1980s, but military ties dropped off after the Soviet Union s collapse. In April, Putin - then Russia s president - met with Libyan leader Moammar Qaddafi in Tripoli in a bid to restore ties between the two former allies. Russian gas monopoly Gazprom also expressed interest in a number of projects. At the time, Putin agreed to write off $4.5 billion in Libyan debt in exchange for lucrative deals, including energy and arms. The agreement led directly to a contract worth ?2.2 billion ($3.4 billion) for state-owned Russian Railways in Libya. On Thursday, both premiers also discussed the construction of a nuclear power plant in Libya for civilian use, and Al-Mahmoudi said his country was planning to open a branch of its investment agency in Moscow. Gazprom is set to be one of the major beneficiaries of improving relations between the two countries. After meetings with Gadhafi early in July, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said the monopoly was considering buying up greater volumes of the country s oil and natural gas exports, as well as taking part in the construction of a gas pipeline to Europe. Both deals are likely to unsettle European gas consumers, which remain heavily reliant on Russian gas imports, and have looked to Libya and other countries in an effort to diversify their energy supply. Gazprom is also looking at a refining joint venture with Libya s National Oil Corp. In a further indication of deepening ties between the two nations, Al-Mahmoudi s plane flew back Lukoil executive Alexander Tsygankov to Russia. The oilman had been detained in Libya since November last year on suspicion of espionage related to a gas tender, local media reported at the time.
