Russia is confident that the crisis in Libya should be resolved only through negotiations between interested parties, said on Friday the Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko at a meeting in Moscow with the speaker of the House of Representatives (elected permanent Parliament) of Libya Aguila Saleh.
"We are impressed with your principled approach to resolving the Libyan crisis. I would like to note that we, like you, firmly believe that the situation must be resolved only through peaceful means, through negotiations between all interested parties. We believe that there is no alternative to a political solution to the Libyan crisis, " Matvienko said.
She added that the similarity of positions on this issue was a strong argument in favor of strengthening cooperation on the parliamentary line. As stated by the speaker of the Federation Council, Russia closely and with empathy follows the events in Libya.
"We hope to help in every possible way to overcome a difficult stage in the development of modern Libya, when the unity of the Libyan people and the territorial integrity of the country are being tested. We sincerely want Libya to become a prosperous and modern state again. We appreciate your desire as the Chairman of the chamber of deputies of the internationally recognized Parliament of Libya to contribute to the search for compromise solutions to the existing complex problems," Matvienko stressed.
Saleh, in turn, noted the historical friendly relations with Russia.
"The Libyan and Russian peoples have historical and traditional relations of friendship," he said, thanking the Russian side for its hospitality and warm welcome.
"I would like to express my greetings to the Russian Federation in the person of its President, people and government, and express my high appreciation and respect for them. I want to inform you that we pray to the Lord from the bottom of our hearts that Russia will be a prosperous and great country," Saleh added.
The speaker of the Libyan Parliament accused the head of the GNA of violating the agreements
Aguila Saleh said that the Government of National Accord of Libya led by Fayez Sarraj violated the Skhirat agreement, under which the powers of the GNA were limited to one year with a possible extension for another year, but "the terms have long expired".
"The international community recognizes as legitimate a body that is not selected, which violates the political agreement concluded in Skhirat in 2015. As a result of the agreement, the presidential council and the Government of National Accord were formed, which could not meet the requirements that were originally laid down," Saleh said at a meeting with the speaker of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko.
He stressed, "these powers and terms have long expired."
"In addition, the GNA not only did not receive support from the chamber of deputies, but was twice rejected and did not take the constitutional oath. How can such a government be legitimate?" Saleh added.
He also accused Sarraj of making decisions alone, which was also contrary to the Skhirat agreement.
"For example, he signed an agreement with Turkey in violation of the political agreement. And without confirmation from the chamber of deputies, " the speaker of the Parliament stressed.
At the end of November 2019, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Sarraj signed memoranda of military cooperation and mutual understanding on Maritime zones that drew condemnation from a number of countries in the region.
Events in Libya
In Libya, for a long time, there have been two parallel bodies of executive power: the Government of National Accord (GNA) of Faiz Sarraj sitting in Tripoli and the interim cabinet acting in the East of the country jointly with the Parliament and supported by the Libyan National Army (LNA) of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. More than a year ago, the opposing camps started fighting for the country's main city, after Haftar launched an offensive on the capital on April 4, 2019, with the goal, as he claimed, of liberating it from terrorists.
In response, the Tripoli Cabinet mobilized all the armed groups under its control, officially requesting assistance from Turkey on the basis of a Memorandum of military cooperation signed with it in November last year. To date, with the active support of Ankara, the GNA has managed to regain control of a number of territories captured earlier by the LNA forces.
In April, Saleh put forward proposals to resolve the crisis, which include the formation of a Commission to draft a new Constitution with the participation of experts from the three historical regions of Libya - Cyrenaica (North-East), Tripolitania (West) and Fezzan (South), as well as with the involvement of foreign experts in this field. It is given 90 days to work, and at the same time, it is proposed to restructure the Presidential Council, including one representative from the three regions who will choose the head of this body, and to form a government of national unity. The term of office of the Cabinet of Ministers will be limited to the period necessary for holding parliamentary and presidential elections.
Russia is making efforts to resolve the Libyan conflict. In particular, it participated in the international conference on Libya in Berlin in January together with the United States, Turkey, Egypt and a number of other countries, as well as the EU and the UN. The main outcome of the conference was a call by its participants for a ceasefire in Libya and a commitment to refrain from interfering in the conflict, observing the arms embargo on the parties. In addition, the participants of the meeting proposed to create a Committee to monitor the implementation of the ceasefire agreement.
The Russian Federation also supported the "Cairo initiative" of Egypt, which includes a cease-fire on the entire territory of Libya from June 8 and the terms of a political settlement.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Federation Council
Based on materials from RIA Novosti, TASS