On Saturday, the five BRICS nations, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa affirmed their support for Libya’s sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and national unity.
BRICS Deputy Foreign Ministers and Special Envoys for the Middle East and North Africa held a meeting held in South Africa. They issued a joint statement on the situation in Libya, where they announced their support for a “Libyan-led and Libyan-owned political process with UN-led mediation in the country.”
They also stressed the need to “respect the will of the Libyan people to choose their leaders,” calling on all parties to “enhance consultation and dialogue, and refrain from any actions that would undermine the ceasefire.”
In addition, the statement welcomed the African Union’s efforts including its High-Level Committee for Libya, in restoring stability and fostering the unification of Libya.
The Deputy Foreign Ministers stressed their aspiration for a positive outcome of the Libyan reconciliation conference.
They also reaffirmed their call for all parties to “create the necessary conditions for the holding of free and fair elections, based on a sound and agreed constitutional framework.”
With regard to Sudan, the deputy FM’s expressed “deep concern about the continued clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF)
They urged the parties to “reach an immediate ceasefire” and stressed the need to respect international and humanitarian law.
Notably, the recent outbreak of civil conflict in Sudan threatens to have a negative effect on the situation in neighbouring Libya, particularly in the southern areas of the country.
The fighting between Sudan’s military and paramilitary leadership threatens to derail plans to repatriate Sudanese mercenaries from Libya. Persistent political uncertainty in Libya, coupled with Sudan’s deepening conflict, is also likely to delay Libya’s political transition and exacerbate security risks.
Libya relies on Sudan for joint coordination and data exchange, both to facilitate the return of Sudanese mercenaries from Libyan territory and in relation to commercial trade (although bilateral trade is limited).
In mid‑February, local Sudanese news outlets reported positive steps in preparations to register mercenaries. This is to ultimately return them from Libya, but there is a lack of concrete information to confirm whether much progress has been achieved.