French PM visits Tunisia as France looks to strengthen ties

French Prime minister Jean Castex landed in the Tunisian capital city Tunis on Thursday, as the French government aims to strenghen its historic ties with the North African country.

Prime minister Castex met with his Tunisian counterpart Hichem Mechichi. 

He said that as Tunisia's most important trading partner, the current crisis bears consequences for his country.

The French government decided to give Tunisan health authorities 240,000 FFP2 masks, 38,000 antigen tests, but also 18 resuscitation ventilators and 3 oxygen generators. 

A move that comes just after a recent spike of Covid-19 cases in the country, that stirred fears of oxygen shortages.

The official visit also addressed the ongoing economic crisis. As the country is heavily indebted, Tunisia hopes to obtain a loan from the IMF, to help set the country’s struggling economy back on track.

France promised a year ago that they were willing to give Tunisia a €350 million loan, but so far authorities have only received a third of the sum, as France awaits reforms.