“Berlin 2” and mercenaries.. Libya roadmap engineer reveals developments
A former United Nations official has confirmed that the second international conference on Libya, held in the German capital, represents an international umbrella that contributes to achieving the unity of Libyans.
Former UN envoy Stephanie Williams, speaking to Italy’s NOVA news agency, said that Berlin 2 “does not end a cycle, but it is an ongoing process that is taking place on the ground”.
The architect of the agreement that contributed to the birth of Libya’s first unified government in 7 years, noted that all countries and regional organizations came together at the Berlin 2 conference to reaffirm the international community’s commitments to the Berlin 1 conference in January 2020, describing it as “very positive”.
She stressed the importance of supporting Libyans who want to turn the page on the past and go to elections, saying that “the Berlin conference is not a final episode, but it is a continuous track that is now underway on the ground.”
Individual messages
The former UN envoy stressed the importance of individual messages from all participants in the conference on continued support and the need to hold the elections on time, as well as the need for mercenaries and foreign forces to leave the country and stop foreign interference.
“It’s easy to talk about mercenaries, but what makes the Libyan crisis unique is that the underlying factor that led to the conflict is the control of resources, prompting the UN mission to set the economic and financial trajectory at the same level as the political and military tracks,” Williams said, urging special attention to the three main Libyan economic institutions : the National Oil Corporation, the Central Bank and the Libyan Investment Authority (the sovereign wealth fund whose assets have been frozen by the United Nations).
Significant step
She stressed that an important step will be taken next Monday in the political process towards agreeing on the holding of elections this year, when the Swiss city of Geneva will host a new direct meeting of the Libyan Political Dialog Forum, which contributed to the birth of the current government last February.
The UN envoy continued : “I know the members of the forum, and I have great confidence in them, especially since they achieved a lot in the first meeting in Tunis, and they showed a very broad consensus to choose the date of December 24 as the day when Libyans will finally be able to regain sovereignty and elect a democratic government.”
American role
On the role of the United States in the Libyan crisis, US diplomacy confirmed that there is greater stability than the current administration led by President Joe Biden, noting that what it sees represents a greater consistency in Washington’s strategy in Libya.
She pointed out that there are messages, which she described as “strong and united,” coming from Washington, which she considered very important for Libyans and for various external parties, stressing that “the government that reflects the will of its people is capable of making sovereign decisions that serve the interest of Libya.”
