On Tuesday, the commander of the EU’s IRINI operation in Libya, Admiral Fabio Agostini, confirmed that they have achieved significant progress in combating arms and oil smuggling in Libya over the past three months.
In press statements, Agostini said that IRINI is committed to implementing the UN arms embargo on Libya. This is through the use of aerial, satellite, and maritime assets.
In particular the mission’s core task is to carry out inspections of vessels on the high seas, off the Libyan coast. Suspected vessels thought to be carrying arms or related material to and from Libya are stopped and searched, in accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 2292 (2016).
“With regard to concerns of some countries that the mission will act as a ‘pull factor’ for migration flows, the mission submits monthly reports to the European Council. Reports have shown no increase in the flows over the last three months”.
Agostini stated that the mission is operating exclusively in accordance with the Security Council resolutions, the United Nations Convention, and the rules of compliance adopted by the member states of the European Union.
The EU-led IRINI was launched on the 31st of March 2020, with the aim to enforce the United Nations arms embargo on Libya. Operation IRINI is a European Union military operation under the umbrella of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP).