25/07/2019 (Agence Europe) – On Thursday, 25 July—the day that the Republic was proclaimed in 1957—High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini paid tribute to Tunisian President Béji Caïd Essebsi, who had died a few hours earlier at the age of 92. “Over the years, President Béji Caïd Essebsi has been a courageous and respected protagonist in Tunisian democratic life, convinced of the importance of a close partnership with the EU”, felt Mrs Mogherini. Mr Essebsi was the first president to be democratically elected in 2014. “With his death, Tunisia has lost one of its most competent and persistent leaders in building a prosperous, democratic Tunisia, capable of offering a better future to its people and a model for the region”, the High Representative added. (CG)