The conflict in Libya is now in an acute phase, with the country being pumped with arms, including by sea, Pyotr Ilyichev, Director of the Department of International Organizations of the Russian Foreign Ministry told RIA Novosti.
"Currently, the Libyan conflict is in an acute phase, and the additional pumping of weapons in the country, of course, makes it difficult to move to a peaceful settlement on the basis agreed under the auspices of the UN. Weapons, in particular, get to Libya by sea," the diplomat said.
Information about the alleged Russian drone in Libya, information about which is contained in the report of the UN panel of experts, is also unreliable – the characteristics of its design are characteristic of devices produced in one of the neighboring countries of Russia.
"A lot of mistakes or deliberate falsifications have also been made in relation to weapons. In particular, it is unclear why experts attribute the Russian origin to the drone found in Libya, although its design characteristics are typical of the manufacturer of one of the countries neighboring Russia. At the same time, equipment that has been in Libya for a long time is being issued for recent deliveries," Ilyichev said.
According to him, another forgery – photos from Syria, passed off as Libyan landscapes.
"The case of Syrian fighters being transported to the West of Libya to support the Government of National Accord requires a separate investigation. Intentionally or not, these facts are turned inside out: these mercenaries linked to terrorist organizations in the report "turned" into fighters of the Libyan National Army," he added.
Moscow considers the approach of UN experts to monitor compliance with the arms embargo against Libya biased, there is no question of independent monitoring.
The diplomat recalled that the UN Security Council's 1970 sanctions Committee on Libya has a group of experts authorized to monitor, among other things, violations of the arms embargo.
"In this case, it is important that the work is carried out in a balanced manner, based on reliable and verified information. Unfortunately, this key rule is systematically ignored. Experts in their research often build their conclusions on the basis of targeted information stuffing, drawing information from dubious sources. Investigations related to violations in 2011 have been completely abandoned. Stories about the transfer of Libyan weapons to Syria to support local militants during their most active offensive against government positions did not develop, although there were very promising developments in this regard. "The topic of the armed presence of a number of Western States in Libya, which was raised in expert reports several years ago, has disappeared from the horizon," Ilyichev said.
"With such a biased approach, it is difficult to talk about independent monitoring of compliance with the arms embargo," he added.
At the same time, we cannot allow the monitoring of the UN Security Council arms embargo against Libya to be conducted only in relation to one side of the conflict.
The diplomat recalled that back in 2016, the UN Security Council established by resolution 2292 a special inspection regime on the high seas off the coast of Libya, which was supposed to increase the effectiveness of monitoring illegal arms flows.
"The European Union's naval operation Sofia operated under this regime until this year, but its results in the weapons sector were scanty. This spring, "Sofia" was transformed into "Irini", but the "first steps" of this mission can hardly be called impressive. We will see how the situation develops, " Ilyichev said.
The European Union announced on March 31 that it was launching a new IRINI naval mission to monitor compliance with the UN arms embargo on Libya. According to the EU statement, the new military mission stops the smuggling of weapons and natural resources in Libya. The EU uses satellites and aerial surveillance to track illegal arms shipments across land borders and by air. The IRINI mission's mandate will last until March 31, 2021.
According to the diplomat, it is essential for Moscow that "all inspection activities comply with international law and the principles laid down in relevant UN Security Council resolutions".
"It is also impossible to allow inspection activities to be focused only on one side of the conflict," he stressed.
For Moscow, according to the diplomat, it is fundamentally important that "all inspection activities comply with international law and the principles laid down in relevant UN Security Council resolutions".
"It is also impossible to allow the inspection activities to be focused only on one side of the conflict," he stressed.
According to Ilyichev, the report of the UN expert group on the "Russian military presence" in Libya is based on dubious sources and Moscow demands that the UN Secretariat investigate the leak of a confidential document to the media.
Previously, the Western media published publications on the confidential report of the group of experts, which claimed that employees of PMC Wagner, as well as some other companies are present in Libya and support the forces of Khalifa Haftar.
"First of all, it should be noted that we are extremely concerned about the leak to the press of the confidential report of the group of experts of the UN Security Council Committee 1970 on sanctions against Libya. It is not the first time that such a document, which is not intended for distribution in public space, has been "leaked". We demand investigation of what happened by the UN Secretariat," Ilyichev said.
According to him, the initial analysis of the text "allows to state its partiality and imbalance".
"Most of the report is built on the basis of unverified or clearly falsified data and is aimed at discrediting Russia's policy in the Libyan direction. The experts use sources of dubious nature that have a direct interest in the Libyan conflict. A considerable number of references to certain materials simply do not work. It is impossible to prove the reliability of a number of statements, especially those based on the so-called "internal negotiations"," added Ilyichev.
"We have no doubt that his goal is to mislead the international community about the Russian policy in Libya," said the diplomat.
Rumors about the presence of "Russian mercenaries" in Libya are based on inaccurate information, many data is clearly falsified, while Moscow has information that Libya has foreign military personnel from other countries.
"Many of the information, especially concerning Russian citizens mentioned in the report is simply unfounded. People who allegedly fought in Libya did not actually leave our country. The so-called "wounded" are quite healthy. All this is available in public space and again it is verifiable. It is noteworthy that the lists selected by experts were copied from the odious Ukrainian database "Peacemaker," Ilyichev said.
He stressed that "rumors about the presence of notorious Russian "mercenaries" in Libya are based on unscrupulous information.
"We know about the presence of foreign military personnel in Libya. But this is a topic for a separate very detailed conversation. This was also mentioned in other reports of the group of experts. However, "leak" of confidential data and conclusions in the media is not our method," stressed Ilyichev.
After the overthrow and murder of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya actually ceased to function as a single State. Now there is a dual power reigning in the country. In the east, the parliament elected by the people sits, while in the west, in the capital, Tripoli, the Government of National Accord, formed with the support of the UN and the European Union and headed by Fayez Sarrage, rules. The authorities in the eastern part of the country operate independently of Tripoli and cooperate with the Libyan National Army, led by Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who has been trying to capture Tripoli since April 2019.
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Based on materials from RIA Novosti