Italy and Malta called on Switzerland to compromise with Libya after a visa spat between the two countries broke out earlier this week, the Arab-language Asharq Al-Awsat daily said on Thursday.
On Monday, Libya denied entry for Schengen-zone passport holders (nearly all EU member states) after Switzerland put nearly 200 senior Libyan officials on a travel blacklist, including the country's leader, Muammar Gaddafi, and his family, denying them entry permits.
The call came following a three-way meeting in Rome on Wednesday between the foreign ministers of Italy, Malta, and Libya.
Shortly after the meeting, Italy's Franco Frattini spoke with his Swiss counterpart, Michele Calmy-Rey, who said Switzerland was ready to scrap the list given that Tripoli released two Swiss businessmen detained in 2008.
While the issue will be discussed later on Thursday at a meeting between Michele Calmy-Rey and Libyan Foreign Minister Mousa Kousa, Libyan officials said the escalation of the dispute will be one of the main issues at the League of Arab States summit scheduled for March.
Frattini in an earlier statement pinned the blame on Switzerland, accusing it of holding Europe "hostage."
Switzerland's row with Libya goes back to July 2008, when Gaddafi's son, Hannibal, and his wife Aline who was 9 months pregnant were arrested in Geneva. They were released on bail after spending two days in custody following a hotel employee complaint of mistreatment by the couple.
Cairo, February 18 (RIA Novosti)
