LONDON, Feb. 10 (Xinhuanet) -- Visiting Libyan Foreign Minister Abdel Rahman Mohammad Shalgam was meeting British Prime Minister Tony Blair here on Tuesday during what the British government called a "milestone" visit to Britain.

    Shalgam's visit, which began on Monday, is the first to Britainby a Libyan foreign minister in more than 30 years. It follows Libya's announcement last December that it was abandoning efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction.

    Shalgam would also hold talks with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw on Tuesday morning.

    According to the British Foreign Office, Shalgam's visit was a "milestone in what have been steadily improving relations" betweenLibya and Britain.

    It was also part of a wider plan to bring Libya into the "international mainstream," the Foreign Office said earlier.

    Britain had been deeply involved in negotiations that secured Libya's pledge to give up its banned weapons after nearly a year of secret talks between Libya, the United States and Britain.

    Last week, London also hosted talks involving senior officials from Britain, Libya and the United States on Libya's dismantling of its banned weapons.

    A Foreign Office spokeswoman told reporters last week that London hoped Shalgam's visit would help resolve the case of the 1984 shooting of British policewoman Yvonne Fletcher, who was killed during a protest by a shot appeared to be fired from a window of the Libyan Embassy in London.

    According to British officials, Libya has failed to cooperate fully in the investigation into the murder.

    Diplomatic ties between the two countries, severed in 1984 due to the row over Fletcher's killing, was restored in 1999 after twoLibyans accused of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, were handed over for trial.

    Libya was listed by the United States as a sponsor of terrorismand was the target of Lockerbie-related UN sanctions until September last year, when Tripoli took responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing and agreed to pay families of the 270 victims about 2.7 billion US Dollars. Enditem