Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi will be meeting Libyan Prime Minister Abdurrahim El-Keib in Tripoli on Monday.

This will be the first meeting between the two prime ministers since Mr El-Keib’s appointment, although they have spoken over the phone. The meeting follows an invitation from Libya. An academic, Abdurrahim al-Keib was named as new premier at the beginning of this month by Libya’s government.

Mr Keib, who specialises in electrical engineering in Tripoli, received 26 out of 51 votes from members of the National Transitional Council.

He replaced Mahmoud Jibril, who had said he would stand down once Libya was declared “liberated”. Mr Jibril was welcomed by Dr Gonzi twice at his office at the Auberge de Castille in Valletta during the Libyan uprising.

This will be Dr Gonzi’s first visit to Tripoli since the Libyan revolution. His last was in February when he met Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, just a few days before the uprising.