EU urges Libya’s warring factions to ‘cease all military actions’
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The EU has called on forces allied to rival Libyan governments to return to the negotiating table and end the conflict by political means. But the entry of Russia and Turkey into the conflict could complicate the matter.
The EU’s foreign policy arm on Monday urged warring factions in Libya to “cease all military actions and resume political dialogue” amid growing escalations in the North African country.
“There is no military solution to the crisis in Libya,” said a spokesperson for the European External Action Service. “The only way to settle it must be a political one, negotiated on the basis of the proposals recently put forward by the United Nations.”
Over the past week, the conflict has taken another violent turn as two competing governments vie for further power in Libya.
Last week, the US State Department said it was “very concerned” by growing hostilities and reports of Russian mercenaries supporting the eastern-based Libyan National Army (NLA) under the guise of private security contractors.
“We see the Russians using hybrid warfare, using drones and aircraft,” a senior US State Department official told Reuters news agency. “With the increased numbers of reported Wagner forces and mercenaries on the ground, we think it’s changing the landscape of the conflict and intensifying it.”
