The Secretary General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres has urged for a strong support for the Berlin conference on Libya, calling on the “two parties of conflict” to commit to an unconditional halt of hostilities.
Guterres renewed warning of foreign support for the fighting parties as it would worsen the conflict and complicate the efforts of reaching a peaceful solution to the crisis in Libya.
He also added that the Berlin conference is going to be about six main points – a lasting ceasefire, implementation of the arms embargo, reforming security sector, return to the political process, economic reforms, and respecting the international humanitarian law.
Meanwhile, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday that Berlin conference is backed by the international community as Turkish and Russian presidents will be attending. She added that the aim of the conference is to facilitate a political solution and consolidate commitment to the arms embargo in Libya.
Germany announced that it had sent invitations for the participation in Berlin conference on Libya to China, France, UK, US, UAE, Italy, Russia, Turkey Egypt, Algeria, and Congo. The conference is set to be held on January 19.
Meanwhile, Berlin hopes to get all international players to use their influence to push for progress on Libya peace talks, a German Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Wednesday, setting out modest ambitions for a Berlin peace conference this weekend.
Spokesman Rainer Breul said the aim was “broader” than the Moscow conference, whose aim had been to secure a ceasefire.
On Thursday morning, Al-Sarraj held a meeting with the political and military officials as well as society personalities in Tripoli and announced he was going to attend the international conference on Libya in Berlin.
During the meeting, Al-Sarraj said they had agreed to the ceasefire in Moscow in order to avoid more bloodshed and to save the lives of the Libyan people.
Al-Sarraj also added that the Europeans are now upset with the Turkish and Russian roles in Libya as they hadn’t taken any practical stance over the last nine months.
