Tripoli hosts Thursday, October 21 a "Conference in support of the stability of Libya" in the presence of representatives of many foreign countries to consolidate the transition process, two months before a presidential election crucial for the future of the country.
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According to Tripoli, the UN Deputy Secretary General for Political Affairs, Rosemary DiCarlo, and the head of the UN Mission in Libya, Jan Kubis, will participate in this "international conference" which is being held as the African country North is trying to turn the page on a decade of chaos. The head of French diplomacy Jean-Yves Le Drian announced Wednesday that he would participate in this conference. Representatives from Italy, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, Algeria, Tunisia, Chad and Sudan are also due to attend, according to Libyan news agency Lana.
Libya is trying to extricate itself from a major political crisis that has persisted since the fall in 2011 of the former regime of Muammar Gaddafi.
After years of armed conflict and divisions between East and West, a new interim government was appointed earlier this year, under the auspices of the UN, to get the country out of an internationalized conflict in leading him to a crucial presidential election set for December 24.
The “Stability Support Conference” aims to
“mobilize the necessary support, in a transparent and fair manner,”
for the holding of this election, said Libyan Foreign Minister Najla al-Mangoush.
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For the international community, the priority is to hold this decisive ballot but surrounded by uncertainties, due to strong internal dissensions. One of the challenges will be to
"capitalize on the current dynamic to see Libya stabilize, because several countries actually want to see a stable Libya, even if it is on their own terms"
, decrypts for AFP Emadeddin Badi , expert at the Global Initiative based in Geneva. Another stake will be to
"capitalize on the Berlin process
(an international conference on peace in Libya, editor's note)
, because part of the reason for this conference is that it is a Libyan version of the Berlin process
,
”
he continues.
While the Libyan conflict was largely fueled by external powers, Tripoli also wishes through the meeting
"to emphasize the need to respect the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Libya"
, according to Ms. al-Mangush.
The meeting will thus address the thorny question of mercenaries.
Last December, the UN reported some 20,000 mercenaries and foreign fighters present in Libya: Russians from the private group Wagner, Chadians, Sudanese, Syrians ... But also several hundred Turkish soldiers present under an agreement bilateral agreement with the former Government of National Unity.
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A few
"very modest"
departures
have since been noted, according to Tripoli. At the beginning of October, military delegations from the two rival Libyan camps agreed on a
"comprehensive action plan"
for their withdrawal, without putting forward a timetable. The presence of
"mercenaries, combatants and foreign forces constitutes a threat not only for Libya, but for the whole region"
, according to the head of Libyan diplomacy.
Another point of discussion, the unification of the army
"under a single command"
.
Because if in theory, the country now has unified power, the eastern region of Cyrenaica is de facto controlled by Marshal Khalifa Haftar, himself a likely presidential candidate.
In the west of the country, one of the main challenges will be the
"dismantling and integration of armed elements not involved in terrorist and criminal acts
,
"
said Ms. al-Mangoush.
