For seven months, Libya has been awaiting the UN appointment of a new special envoy to succeed Ghassan Salamé and the interim who took over the post from Stéphanie Williams. This country, divided between two powers, and which has been living in chaos since 2011, is going through a delicate period following the announcement of a ceasefire last month, which must be consolidated …
At the end of September, the American special correspondent Stéphanie Williams will leave her post. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is stepping up his efforts to find a successor, but the difficulties persist.
This time it is the turn of the African countries present in the Security Council to block the appointment. The candidacy approved by the Americans does not suit them. According to a diplomat, they are asking for an African to occupy this position as the UN Special Envoy to Libya. But Washington has already twice prevented an African candidacy.
Antonio Guterres had already in March last year proposed the name of the former Algerian foreign minister Ramtane lamamra. His candidacy had reached consensus, but Washington opposed it and blocked and the person in question threw in the towel himself.
In June, it was against the candidacy of Hanna Tetteh, the former Ghanaian foreign minister, that Washington was again accused of blocking. The name Teteh had nevertheless gained consensus in the Security Council.
Today, it is the African countries that would oppose the candidacy supported by the United States to occupy this position. This is the Bulgarian Nicolaï Mladenov, 48 years old. Since February 2015, the latter has been the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East peace process.
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