The Libyan government-designate headed by Fathi Bashagha welcomed the appointment of Abdoulaye Bathily as the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) to Libya.
In a statement, the Libyan government affirmed that Libyan solutions and local, workable and credible settlements are the basis for a comprehensive and lasting political solution to the crisis in Libya.
The government stressed that an agreement between the House of Representatives (HoR) and the High Council of State (HCS) is the only way to reach a unified executive authority able to hold presidential and parliamentary elections.
The government added that it has always cooperated with the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (USMIL) and facilitated the work of agencies and international organisations concerned with the Libyan issue.
The government indicated that it had previously sent a written letter to the Secretary-General welcoming the candidacy of Bathily based on his experience and competence and for being from the African Union (AU).
On Saturday, the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, announced the appointment of the former Senegalese Minister and UN diplomat to be the new UN Envoy to Libya after the Security Council gave its approval.
The UN Secretary General’s decision to appoint Bathily as the UN Envoy came after a nine-month search amid increasing chaos in the oil-rich North African nation.
Libya’s transitional government, which opposed Bathily’s nomination, reportedly sent a protest letter to Guterres. This raised questions about how effective the new Envoy can be in trying to resolve the country’s political and economic crisis.
The last UN Special Representative, Ján Kubiš, resigned on November 23rd, 2021, after 10 months on the job, and a number of candidates proposed by Guterres were rejected by council members, Libya, or neighbouring countries.