Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, has stated that the current exceptional circumstances in Libya, “may create favourable conditions for a national dialogue about the country’s future.”
He affirmed the EU’s readiness to support this dialogue, “in any way possible if Libyan parties decide to proceed under the auspices of the United Nations.”
In an article titled “Helping Libya After Darna,” published on the European Union’s diplomatic service website, Borrell pointed out his recent meeting with Abdoulaye Bathily, the Special UN Envoy to Libya.
He said the meeting “provided an opportunity to assess the ongoing political crisis in a country that, despite its immense potential wealth. Libya has recently suffered a devastating natural disaster linked to climate change and neglect.”
Borrell pointed out that Libya has been in a state of chaos since 2011, with deepening traditional divisions between Tripoli in the west, and Benghazi in the east, exacerbated by foreign interference.
“Since 2014, Libya has de facto two Parliaments, one in Tripoli, and the other in Tobruk. As is all too often the case, internal rifts attract outsider meddlers, and the country has repeatedly been flooded with weapons, mercenaries and foreign terrorist fighters,” he said.
The EU official further noted that numerous attempts to reunify the country under a single authority, mediated by the United Nations and other international facilitators, have provided only temporary relief before divisions resurfaced.
Recent tensions have underscored the unsustainability of the current situation, and the urgent need to resolve the current political impasse.
On 10 September, a devastating storm swept through several eastern regions of Libya, notably the cities of Derna, Benghazi, Al-Bayda, Al-Marj, and Sousse. This resulted in significant destruction and led to the loss of thousands of lives, injuries, and missing individuals.