Algeria and the European Union signed Sunday in Algiers a memorandum of understanding related to strategic partnership in the field of energy, APS news agency reported.

The document was signed by Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso, who started on Saturday a two-day visit in the North African country.

Following the signing ceremony, Barroso told a press conference that "this MoU has strategic content and objectives... it is a tool for developing energy cooperation between Algeria and the EU. "

On his arrival at Houari Boumediene International Airport in Algiers on Saturday night, Barroso told reporters that "My visit aims to strengthen relations in the field of political dialogue and economic cooperation."

During the talks with Barroso on Sunday, Sellal said that his country "works, since the signing of the Association Agreement with the EU in 2002, to give a sustainable and strategic dimension to the relations with the EU," adding that "such a dimension is dictated by the geographical proximity, economic challenges as well as the crucial nature of the human factor in terms of its contribution to a better understanding between the peoples."

According to the Algerian Customs, the European Union was the largest business partner of Algeria in 2012, with 63.99 billion U. S. dollars, which represents over 50 percent of Algeria's global foreign trade.