The EU could soon step up training and equipping Libya’s coast guard to crack down on refugee smuggling in the north African nation’s waters, according to an EU proposal seen by AFP on Saturday.

Tunisian and Libya agreed to resume vital trade through the Ras Jedir crosspoint after a week of unrest, a source close to the negotiations said, a decision Tunis hopes will end angry protests in the border region.

Libya’s UN-backed government has not accepted proposals by Rome aimed at cutting migrant and refugee flows to Italy and the two sides are “far apart” on the issue, Malta’s foreign minister said today.

Chad has officially closed its borders with Libya and has opted to deploy troops along the long boundaries in an extensive effort to prevent the big influx of militant fighters who have fled the country because of the prolonged conflict.

Anger in Libya over an agreement last Sunday between Libyan and Tunisian municipalities on either side of the border that is said to give Tunisian traders a significant financial advantage over Libyans is growing.

The Libyan authorities responsible for the crossing border of Ras Ajdair between Libya and Tunisia said Monday that the crossing checkpoint is open for both countries’ citizens, however, the residents of Ben Guredane in Tunisia are blocking the road and preventing travelers to go through from either side.

The spokesperson of the Presidential Council (PC), Ashraf Tulty, had announced, in Tripoli on Sunday, that the coming days will witness the formation of the new security devices, including the Presidential Guards.

The head of the Presidential Council (PC) of the Government of National Accord (GNA), Fayez Al-Sarraj, and his deputy, Ahmed Mitig, met, on Thursday in Tripoli, a common team from the sovereign institutions of the security and administrations of the national borders.

The EU is set to start training of Libyan Coastguard personnel on October 24, Libya’s official news agency LANA quoted EU sources as saying.

The spokesman of the Libyan Navy, Brigadier Ayoub Qasim, has lashed out at EU’s Operation Sophia, saying it’s propaganda for political gains. In an interview with the Libya Observer on Sunday 21, Qasim has also accused the EU countries of taking part in stealing Libya’s marine resources.