The situation in Libya has seen many significant developments recently, including the long-term ceasefire agreement signed on October 23 last year, the establishment of the Government of National Unity on March 15, 2021, and the relevant sides achieving consensus on the date of elections on December 24, 2021, However; the presence of foreign forces and mercenaries in the country remains, the Vietnamese ambassador, Dang Dinh Quy, said.
Ambassador Quy is the Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations and he chaired the UN Security Council’s informal interactive meeting on the situation in Libya on Thursday.
He urged the parties concerned in Libya to fully comply with the ceasefire agreement signed last October, while appealing to the parties both inside and outside Libya to fully adhere to the Security Council’s arms embargo on the country.
Ambassador Quy said the date for the withdrawal of mercenaries is a tough question as it needs many factors, especially “political willingness” by the member states that are involved in Libya to agree on pulling out their mercenaries, according to The Associated Press.
Diplomats added to The Associated Press that the 15 member states of the Security Council had agreed that the withdrawal of foreign mercenaries from Libya was the only way to move forward, while some of them referred to the fact that those mercenaries were sent to Libya by certain Security Council member states.
Diplomats also said that Russia responded by saying it had voted for the Security Council resolution adopted unanimously on April 16 that authorised up to 60 UN monitors to help implement the cease-fire agreement.
“Russia said it had called for full implementation of last October’s cease-fire agreement, including through the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya without delay.” The diplomats added.
The Associated Press said the Security Council had listened to the briefing of the UNSMIL Coordinator Raisedon Zenenga, who spoke about gathering all forces and military elements in one place in Libya and then starting to disarm groups, disband some of them and integrate others, an idea that a diplomat told The Associated Press was as significant as the removal of mercenaries.
