Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte called for a permanent ceasefire in Libya following a meeting in the capital Ankara on Monday.
"We are exerting efforts for the ceasefire to be permanent," Erdoğan said in a televised press conference a day after a fragile truce was established.
"I especially hope for the signing of a cease-fire agreement [in Libya] sometime soon," Erdoğan added.
Talks between Libya's warring parties in Moscow, supported by Turkish and Russian officials, are going positively, Turkish leader said in a statement.
Libya's rival leaders are holding peace talks in Moscow on Monday. Turkey and Russia, which back opposing sides in the conflict, are urging them to sign a binding truce to end a nine-month-old war and pave the way for a settlement.
On Sunday, the warring sides in the Libyan conflict announced a cease-fire in response to a call by Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
The cease-fire took effect at midnight local time (2200GMT), and the decision was celebrated with fireworks in Tripoli.
"UNITED NATIONS FORCES SHOULD HELP ENFORCE CEASEFIRE"
Speaking alongside Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte in Ankara, Erdoğan said he will attend a summit in Berlin on Sunday to discuss developments in Libya, along with Conte and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Erdoğan said he hoped United Nations forces would help enforce the ceasefire.
"Right now talks are continuing in Moscow," he said. "I have information from my friends a while ago that the talks are continuing in the positive direction.
"I think it will be a right move if the UN is tasked as an observer to strongly maintain the peace process."
Also touching on the situation in Idlib, northwestern Syria, where a Saturday cease-fire succeeded a fall 2018 de-escalation declaration that had often been violated, Erdoğan stressed they expect Italy's support to maintain the status of the region.
CONTE: WE DISCUSSED URGENT NECESSITY OF PUTTING END TO ESCALATION
Conte, for his part, said the cease-fire in Libya would pave the way for an important opportunity and he hopes the country will enter a peaceful process.
"We have discussed the urgent necessity of putting an end to the escalation on the ground to guarantee a lasting ceasefire," Conte said.
"The ceasefire might result in a precarious measure if it isn't included in a larger collective effort of the international community aimed at guaranteeing the unity, stability, sovereignty of Libya," he added.
Erdoğan and Conte were meeting as the heads of Libya's warring parties came together in Russia, where they were expected to sign an agreement ahead of an international summit due later this month in Berlin.
The Turkish Communications Directorate said earlier that Erdoğan received Conte at the presidential complex in Ankara. The closed-door meeting lasted for over an hour.
