“US Ambassador to Libya Richard Norland said it is more important than ever to organize elections that could take Libya beyond the endless cycle of transitional governments, as the end of the preparatory phase of the Libyan political dialog forum approaches a comprehensive solution in June.”
The US embassy in Libya published Norland’s statements on Saturday, after a telephone conversation he had with the speaker of the Libyan parliament, Aguila Saleh, during which they discussed the current political situation and the prospects for regaining momentum towards the elections.
The embassy quoted Norland as saying that his country is working with key actors on all sides “to maintain stability and meet the most important needs of the people.”
“We support the efforts of leaders, including the speaker of the House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, to agree on a Libyan-led mechanism to facilitate and monitor these expenditures,” he added.
The most important issue for the United States at this time, he explained, is “the need for sufficient political consensus, acceptance, and credibility by a critical mass of the Libyan people throughout the country to lead the country to elections.
The ambassador noted that he urged the Speaker of the Libyan Parliament to “continue to provide all necessary support to establish a constitutional and legal basis for the organization of elections as soon as possible in conjunction with the process facilitated by the United Nations.”
The Libyan Parliament had announced the formation of a new committee, which will reach agreement on a constitutional basis with the High Council of State, to pave the way for holding general elections in the country, in an attempt to end the current political impasse..
The committee includes 12 members of parliament, who will review the points of disagreement in the draft constitution completed by the Constituent Assembly and make the necessary amendments.
