Russia and Turkey have taken a leading role in the settlement of the situation in Libya, however, it is worth refraining from international participation in the intra-Libyan conflict, an official representative of the “Alternatives for Germany” faction in the Armin-Paulus Humpel Bundestag on foreign policy issues told.
“Turkey and Russia have already de facto taken the lead (in the settlement in Libya), everything else was a verbal reaction. On the other hand, it is necessary to clearly imagine that the parties directly involved, in fact, the two parties – Prime Minister Sarraj and General Haftar – did not meet in the framework of the conference”, – Hampel said, adding that “no armistice agreement was signed either, although during the trip (German Foreign Minister Heiko) Maas to Libya it seemed even more different.
Last Sunday, Berlin hosted an international conference on Libya with the participation of Russia, the United States, Turkey, Egypt and other countries, as well as the EU and the UN. Despite the fact that the summit was attended by Prime Minister of the Government of National Accord Fayez Sarrage and Commander of the Libyan National Army Khalifa Haftar, it was not possible to organize direct negotiations between them again.
The conference resulted in the adoption of a document in which the leaders of the participating countries reaffirmed their commitment to non-interference in Libyan domestic politics, while noting the leading role of the UN in resolving the conflict in the country. Conference participants declared “unconditional and full” respect for the arms embargo on this country, which was previously imposed by a decision of the UN Security Council, and called not to take actions contrary to this regime, including through the recruitment of mercenaries. The first step in the security sector envisages the creation of a Joint 5+5 Military Commission in Libya, which will consist of “regular army and/or police officers under the auspices of the UN”.
Following a meeting with Haftar in Benghazi on 16 January, Maas said that the head of LNA was prepared to adhere to a ceasefire in Libya. According to him, the commander-in-chief “promised to adhere to the ceasefire, regardless of the fact that he did not sign a ceasefire agreement early this week in Moscow.
As part of the meeting, held the day before in Brussels, the EU foreign ministers summed up the conference on Libya. The ministers did not rule out that to monitor the implementation of the UN arms embargo on Libya, the EU countries could use the naval mission “Sofia” created in 2015 to fight against smugglers in international waters off the Libyan coast. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said the country is ready to take an active part in monitoring the ceasefire in Libya. Previously, Italy sought the introduction of a peacekeeping mission under the UN auspices with the participation of the EU.
At the same time, a representative of the “Alternative for Germany” faction on foreign policy issues doubtfully commented on the possibility of creating a European observation mission in Libya.
After the overthrow and murder of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya actually ceased to function as a single state. There is now dual power in the country. In the east, the parliament elected by the people sits, while in the west, in the capital, Tripoli, the NTC, formed with the support of the UN and the European Union, rules. The authorities in the eastern part of the country operate independently of Tripoli and cooperate with the LNA of Marshal Khalifa Haftar.