American Foreign Minister Mike Pompeo stressed to the Libyan government on Friday the need for a ceasefire, as his forces reap successes to repel Marshal Khalifa Haftar's offensive. In a phone call to the internationally recognized Prime Minister of the Government, Fayez al-Sarraj, the Secretary of State "reiterated the opposition of the United States to the persistent flow of arms and ammunition arriving in the country " , According to a statement from American diplomacy. The two men "stressed the importance of an immediate end to the fighting and a return to political dialogue" .
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In April 2019, the forces of Marshal Haftar, a strong man from eastern Libya, launched an offensive to seize Tripoli, the capital where the government of national unity is seated, in the midst of a power struggle in this oil-plunged country in chaos since the fall of the regime of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. Over the months, foreign interference has exacerbated the conflict, with the United Arab Emirates and Russia supporting the Haftar camp, and Turkey that of the government. With increasing Turkish support, the pro-government forces have been carrying out military successes in recent weeks.
The United States officially supports the government of Fayez al-Sarraj, but its position has caused confusion in the past, especially during a laudatory phone call from Donald Trump with Marshal Haftar in April 2019.