Russia hopes that Libya's elections will take place on the scheduled date (December 24), but a slight postponement will not be a problem, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with the Egyptian TV channel TeN.
"The date [of the elections] has been set - December 24. I hope it will remain on it. The priority for us is not to keep a formal deadline, but to ensure the elections in such a way that representatives of all the leading political forces can take part in them and that they all recognize the results. Let me say frankly and openly that from this point of view, even if there is a slight delay or postponement, I do not see it as a big problem," said the minister.
Lavrov stressed that the main thing in this situation is the elimination of all the rough edges that appear in the process of preparing for the elections. "I mean the inclusiveness of the participants in this process and the list of candidates. There were attempts by the electoral authorities of Libya not to allow some people to the elections, then these decisions were revised. I hope that everyone will be admitted," he explained.
"We will be advocating that the Libyans themselves ensure that the election processes are transparent and clean and that they find the courage to recognize the result of their people's choice," said the Foreign Minister. Lavrov also stressed that the process of general presidential and parliamentary elections in Libya, which are scheduled for one day, was launched thanks to international efforts, to which Russia has contributed for many years.
Non-interference in the affairs of the Libyan people
According to Lavrov, Russia strongly discourages Americans and Europeans from trying to rule the fate of the Libyan people again before the upcoming elections in Libya.
"I cannot speak for the Libyan people," he said when asked about Moscow's attitude toward individual candidates in the upcoming elections. - "The US has all the more no right to do so: it participated in the destruction of the Libyan state in 2011. As then-President Barack Obama said, the US tried to lead "from behind." "From behind," countries such as France let loose. It, as it turns out, had a personal beef with [then-Libyan leader] Muammar Gaddafi at the time. I would not take the liberty and strongly advise Americans and Europeans not to try again to decide the fate of another people, especially a Libyan one. Let the Libyans decide".
Lavrov said that Gaddafi's son Seif al-Islam "has many supporters", as well as Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, Speaker of the House of Representatives (permanent parliament) Aguila Saleh, head of the current interim Cabinet Abdul Hamid Dbeibah and other participants of the presidential race.
As Lavrov stressed, it is impossible to deny the fact that the West caused the destruction of Libya in 2011 and the subsequent suffering of Libyans.
"Everyone recognizes another, larger reality: after the West bombed Libyan statehood, a 'black hole' appeared in its place," the Russian foreign minister continued. - "Gangsters and extremists, whom the West armed against Gaddafi, headed southward through this hole. This was the main cause of the crisis observed in the Sahara-Sahel region for many years. Now this zone is one of the most dangerous in terms of the spread of extremist ideology and the physical presence of various branches of Al Qaeda (banned in Russia) and ISIS (the former name of the banned in Russia group Islamic State) there. Refugees "flowed" north through Libya, which Europe is suffering from and is trying to fend off. One must take responsibility for one's actions".
About the elections
With less than two weeks to go before elections, the chances that they will be held on time, as originally insisted on by members of the Geneva forum, which set December 24 as the single day to vote for members of parliament and the head of state, are rapidly diminishing. The Supreme State Council of Libya, which is the de facto second house of parliament in an advisory role to the Islamist-dominated parliament, has repeatedly and emphatically called for the elections to be postponed to at least February, which it believes should separate the election of the president and parliament.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Creative Commons
Based on materials from TASS