On Monday, inter-Libyan talks were held in Moscow, in which leaders of the ruling groups of the Libyan state took part: the Head of the Libyan National Army, Khalifa Haftar, and the Prime Minister of the Government of the National Accord of Libya, Faiz Sarraj. The main issue brought up for discussion was the possibility of signing an agreement on a ceasefire between the two ruling groups.
The reason for the prevailing diarchy was the overthrow and assassination of Libyan leader Mummar Gaddafi in 2011, after which the eastern People’s Parliament, working with the Libyan National Army, and the western Government of National Accord, acting independently, took control of the state.
According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, “NATO policy bombed the Libyan statehood”.
“We are still reaping the consequences of this adventure – a criminal, illegal adventure. First of all, of course, the Libyan people are going through this”, – he said at a press conference following talks with his Sri Lankan counterpart Dinesh Gunadevarden.
The attempt to sign the final document on the armistice and de-escalation failed: Marshal Khalifa Haftar refused to give his consent, which was most likely caused by the issue of the dissolution of the armed formations, namely the lack of the time frame for the cessation of the existence and dissolution of these formations. As a result, Haftar made a request for extra time.
Nevertheless, as Lavrov emphasized, at the moment many countries are taking part in solving the problem created by the Alliance. The diplomatic successes of the Russian Federation, which will continue to make efforts to resolve the Libyan situation, deserve special attention.
“All the efforts that Europeans are now making, including Germans, French, Italians, the efforts that are being made by the Libyan neighbors – Algeria, Egypt, as well as the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Qatar, the Russian Federation – we want to put it together, and that’s it: we are acting in the same direction and encouraging all Libyan parties to come to an agreement, rather than continuing to sort things out by force”, – Lavrov said at a news conference following talks with a Sri Lankan counterpart.