[ad_1]
World powers are meeting in Berlin on Wednesday to ensure that the North African country, which is struggling to find lasting peace in Libya, will remain steadfast on its path to the December 24 general election.
Representatives of Libya’s interim government will meet with US Secretary of State Antony Blink and French and Egyptian foreign ministers in UN-sponsored talks.
The effort to end a decade-long spiral of violence in Libya would be the second round in Berlin, after the first attended by presidents of Turkey, Russia and France in January 2020.
Ahead of Wednesday’s talks, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas reminded participants of their commitment to end the international mix last year and withdraw foreign fighters or troops.
“Those who promised to retire to Berlin last time have not kept their word,” Maas said in an interview with Die Welt.
“In order for the Libyans to redefine the fate of their country, foreign forces must step aside. The transitional government has also made that clear, ”he stressed.
The UN estimates that there are still 20,000 fighters and mercenaries abroad in Libya, a presence seen as a threat to the UN-recognized transition to elections.
Libya has been in chaos since a NATO-backed uprising overthrew Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
The country was then divided into the UN-approved National Accord Government (GNA) capital, Tripoli, and backed by an opposition administration based in the east of the country, armed groups and foreign governments.
In April 2019, fugitive military commander Khalifa Haftar and his eastern forces, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive to try to take Tripoli.
The 14-month-long campaign collapsed after Turkey increased support from the Tripoli government with advanced military hardware, troops and thousands of mercenaries.
In October, after Turkish-backed GNA forces targeted Haftar, the two camps agreed to a ceasefire in Geneva.
Russian, Turkish presence
The security situation in Libya has been slowly improving since then. However, the UN recently warned that progress has been halted, especially in the key conditions of the polls, with the withdrawal of all foreign soldiers.
Western leaders have repeatedly called on foreign fighters to step aside. But the Russian mercenaries who help the Haftar in the east are still in it.
Turkey has troops in Tripoli, and says they have been sent through a bilateral agreement with the government, which is not affected by a request for foreign troops to leave.
But any withdrawal is also a delicate balance, the German foreign minister said.
“Foreign forces must leave the country in a gradual and uniform manner so that there is no sudden military imbalance that can be used by a side for a sudden attack,” Maas said.
Jalel Harchaoui, a senior official at the Global Initiative and an expert on Libya, believes the talks could lead to significant support for the upcoming elections.
“Someone may have a good idea to agree on a constitutional basis in July and be on the road to the December elections,” he said, citing a key condition for the election. “I think it’s a good opportunity [for elections by year’s end] and the Berlin process can help. ”
Claudia Gazzini, the think tank of the Crisis Group group, warned that there is still a long way to go for long-term peace in Libya, but the conference could bring new dynamism to the process.
“The Libyan parliament and executive were not only able to move the process forward,” Gazzini said. “That’s why tensions between rival groups have increased again in recent times.”
[ad_2]
Source link
