The UN Security Council is voting on a draft resolution calling on all foreign forces and mercenaries to leave Libya and authorizing a small UN team to monitor last October’s ceasefire order ordering their departure. The results of the e-mail vote on the proposed resolution – due to COVID-19 – are expected to be announced on Friday.
The UK draft resolution would approve Secretary – General Antonio Guterre’s proposal on the composition and operational aspects of ceasefire monitoring set out in a letter to the Council.
In the letter of April 7, received by the Associated Press (AP), the UN chief proposed “an initial maximum number of 60 monitors” for “a phased deployment” of the ceasefire monitoring component that would be part of the UN political mission in Libya known as UNSMIL.
The monitors would be deployed to the strategic city of Sirte, the gateway to the country’s major oil fields and export terminals, “once all the requirements for a permanent UN presence have been met, including security, logistics, medical and operational aspects,” the letter said.
Meanwhile, it said “a forward-looking presence” would be established in the capital Tripoli “as soon as conditions allow.”
Guterres said, “the proposed number of UNSMIL fire brigade monitors takes into account Libyan demand, as well as measures to enable regular rotation of personnel in and out of Libya, while ensuring flexibility in the geographical coverage of the surveillance area.”
The oil-rich Libya was thrown into chaos after a 2011 NATO uprising overthrew the long-serving dictator Moammar Gadhafi and divided the country between a UN-backed National Agreement (GNA) in Tripoli and rival authorities based in the country’s east. Each side was supported by a number of local militias as well as regional and foreign powers.
In April 2019, Putchist General Khalifa Haftar and his forces, with the support of Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), launched an offensive to try to capture Tripoli. His campaign collapsed after Turkey strengthened its military support for UN-backed GNA. A ceasefire agreement in October has led to an agreement on a transitional government and elections scheduled for December 24.
A recently published report by UN experts accused several foreign governments of turning the oil-rich country into a stage to play out rivalries and ignore UN sanctions and a decade-long UN arms embargo, which it said was “completely ineffective.”
The proposed resolution “strongly urges all Member States to respect and support the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement, including the immediate withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya.” It would also require full compliance with an arms embargo against Libya.
Libyan leaders are talking to Putin
Meanwhile, the head of Libya’s interim government has met in Moscow with Russia’s prime minister and head of the Security Council and has spoken by telephone with President Vladimir Putin.
The Kremlin said Putin told Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah in Thursday’s talks that Russia will “continue to promote the inter-Libyan political process to achieve long-term stability in Libya, strengthen its sovereignty and unity and ensure progressive socio-economic development.” ”
In March, Dbeibah became prime minister of the caretaker government, which aims to lead the country through elections scheduled for December. The government appointment has revived hopes for stability in oil-rich Libya.
Russian news agencies said Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin was discussing investment opportunities with Dbeibah. Libyan leader and head of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev discussed joint efforts against terrorism.
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