The grassroots 5-Star Movement and the far-right League party that ruled Italy from June 2018 until August last year caused the country to lose influence in war-torn Libya, European Union economy commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said on Wednesday.
"In the 14 months of Five-Star-League coalition government, Italy rather took its eye off Libya," Gentiloni told Famiglia Cristiana weekly.
"That is true both in terms of economic cooperation and humanitarian issues concerning the detention centres and refugee centres," said Gentiloni.
He is a member of the centre-left Democratic Party which since September last year has governed Italy with the Five-Star Movement.
A "lack of initiative" by Rome, the US's retreat from its former role in region and the eurosceptic government's increased isolation in Europe led to Italy's "massively diminished influence in Libya," Gentiloni argued
"We need to prevent the formation of two Libyas - one under Turkish influence and other under the aegis of Egypt and Russia," Gentiloni underlined.
He was referring to the west and east of Libya, which have been governed by rival administrations since 2014.
"We need to resume a path that will rebuild unity among Libya's various tribes and militias and which makes them all protagonists," said Gentiloni.
"We can't replace an inter-Libyan process with mediation by foreign powers."
Italy has extensive economic interests in oil-rich Libya, its former colony, from which many of the people traffickers' boats head to Europe.
