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Germany's Maas praises Libya's unified interim government

March 11, 2021

German, French, Egyptian and Jordanian leaders hailed Libya's vote to establish a unified leadership as a chance to stabilize the country. The move could pave the way to a resolution to the nearly decade-long conflict.

https://p.dw.com/p/3qUcu
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas at a press conference on the Middle East Peace process in Paris, France
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas at a press conference on the Middle East Peace process in Paris, FranceImage: Ludovic Marin/REUTERS

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Thursday Libya's recent approval of an interim government, was an "excellent development" for the war-torn nation. 

Maas' comments echoed those of his French, Egyptian and Jordanian counterparts during a press conference in Paris.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on Thursday called the move "good news."

"When there is good news we need to talk about it. The fact that yesterday there was a vote of confidence concerning the political process that has been started .. that's an important point," said Shoukry.

Meanwhile, the EU ambassador to Libya, Jose Sabadell, stressed that the new unity government could "count on the full support of the international community."

In earlier remarks on Wednesday, Maas said that Libya's parliament has declared the way for the political process to continue. The interim government has now "taken on the major task of preparing nationwide free elections." The country must be reunited and "rule of law structures must be established and strengthened," he added.

A possible path to peace

The Libyan parliament on Wednesday approved an interim government, mandated to bring the divided and war-torn country together, and to oversee elections in December as part of a UN-backed peace plan.

The parliament's approval of Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh's Cabinet by 132 votes to two against is set to pave the way to a resolution to Libya's nearly decade-long conflict.

"Through this vote, it became clear that the Libyans are one unit," Dbeibeh told parliament after the vote.

The parliament session was in Sirte, where front lines stabilized last summer after the Government of National Accord (GNA) pushed Khalifa Haftar's eastern-based Libyan National Army back from Tripoli.

Italian fishers abducted by Libyan militias

Amending the constitution and holding free elections in 2021 will be a challenge for Libyan leaders, although all sides have formally committed to do so.

"If we come out of this with one government and one set of institutions then we're already in a far superior place than we've been for the last five years," said Tarek Megerisi of the European Council on Foreign Relations.

lc/rs (AFP, Reuters)