The US Embassy in Libya announced on Monday that it reiterated the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) invitation to all parties in Libya and the international community to support the political process led by the United Nations.
In a statement, the Embassy called for all sides to respect the UN arms embargo and stressed that there was no military solution to the crisis.
The statement referred to a phone call between NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and Prime Minister of the Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez Al-Sarraj, during which the two discussed recent developments in Libya.
During the call, Stoltenberg expressed his deep concern over the recent escalation of violence in Libya.
“The results of the Berlin conference in January 2020 and the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2510 were defined as a clear political way to move forward,” he said.
In an interview with Italian news agency ‘La Repubblica’, Stoltenberg had said that “In Libya, there is an arms embargo that needs to be respected by all sides.” but that this did not mean putting “on the same level the forces led by Haftar and the government of Fayez Al-Sarraj, the only one recognized by the UN. For this reason, NATO is ready to give its support to the government of Tripoli.”
On the potential of NATO’s support to Libya, the Secretary-General said, “NATO is still ready to assist Libya in building its defense and security institutions”.
This support comes in response to a request made by the GNA. He added that NATO’s assistance to Libya would take into account the current political and security circumstances.