Nov 20, 2008, 14:41 GMT
Madrid - The Union for the Mediterranean will not work unless it is given sufficient funding, Tunisian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi warned Thursday.
It was not possible to carry out large-scale projects without adequate finances, Ghannouchi said at a joint press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero during a visit to Madrid.
Economic growth on the southern shore of the Mediterranean also fuelled growth on the northern shore, Ghannouchi explained.
Earlier on Monday, Ghannouchi stressed the need for projects increasing economic equality, warning that the Union for the Mediterranean could lead to disappointment like the Euro-Mediterranean partnership, which was launched in Barcelona in 1995.
Zapatero thanked Tunisia for having accepted Barcelona as the seat for the new union's headquarters, for which the Tunisian capital was also a candidate, and said Spain wanted a Tunisian to head the secretariat of the organization.
Ghannouchi was visiting Spain to discuss bilateral relations.
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