UN special envoy for Libya Ghassan Salamé said on Tuesday the warring sides have agreed on turning the current truce into a lasting ceasefire, as the two sides are willing to start negotiations.
However, Salamé pointed out that the two rivals in Libya continue to violate the arms embargo, and mercenaries are still flowing into the country.
Turkey has been deploying Syrian fighter in support of Government of National Accord (GNA) in an unprecedented development that threatens to further complicate the north African state’s intractable civil war.
On Monday, military officers representing the rival factions in Libya began UN-led talks in Geneva, hoping to secure a ceasefire after 10 months of fighting on the outskirts of the capital Tripoli.
Five senior officers representing the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF) and five others aligned with the GNA formed the “Libyan Joint Military Commission” to address reaching a ceasefire in accordance with the outcomes of the Berlin Conference.
About three weeks ago, Germany hosted a peace conference to support the efforts of UN Secretary-General António Guterres and his Special Representative Ghassan Salamé to end the conflict in Libya.
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council, Italy, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Egypt, Algeria, and the Republic of the Congo participated in the meeting.
During the meeting, the participants committed to the existing arms embargo in Libya, but the UN said last week that some countries have violated it, delivering arms to the airports in both eastern and western parts of Libya, areas controlled by LAAF. The GNA is also accused of receiving military aid and arms.
Salamé said that “the embargo had been violated incessantly,” adding that “more than 20m pieces of weaponry are already in the country and that is enough. The country does not need that equipment.”
The UN did not name the countries violating the arms embargo, noting that groups loyal to the LAAF have imposed a blockade on major oil ports and fields that shut off most of Libya’s oil production.
