On Monday, Libya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs officially endorsed the appointment of Italian diplomat, Nicola Orlando as the new Ambassador of the European Union to Libya.
Previously, various Libyan and international insiders had conveyed Tripoli’s initial hesitancy to approve Orlando, especially as a successor to the seasoned Spanish diplomat, José Sabadell. However, the pendulum swung in Orlando’s favour, after the Libyan authorities received what they termed as “constructive clarifications” on the subject. This shift was documented in the Foreign Ministry’s Resolution No. 14790.196.20.
Meanwhile, Nabila Massrali, the Spokeswoman for the European Commission for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, remained non-committal on the speculations surrounding the nomination of French diplomat, Patrick Simonnet, the former EU Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman, for the same role.
Addressing the media last week, Massrali mentioned, “We can verify that Ambassador José Sabadell has concluded his tenure in Libya as scheduled. Announcements regarding our ambassadorial assignments will be made once all due processes are completed, approvals are acquired, and the incoming ambassador is set to assume their new role.”
Orlando, born in 1975, has had an extensive diplomatic career since 2001. Between 2017 and 2019, he played a pivotal role as the Deputy Ambassador in Tripoli, when Giuseppe Perrone, led the diplomatic mission. In May 2021, Orlando was recognized as Italy’s Special Envoy to Libya.
The decision to appoint Orlando was finalized by the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell in April.