Over the last week, international actors held major diplomatic meetings with the GNA outside of the rubric of the UN-led peace process.
On 22 December, Nikolai Mladenov announced that he is unable to take up his role as UN special representative for Libya and head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) due to personal and family reasons. On 23 December, the Turkish parliament approved a measure to deploy troops in Libya for a further 18 months. It was backed by the ruling Turkish AKP and the Nationalist Movement Parties, while it was opposed the main opposition parties. On 26 December, Turkish Defence Minister, Hulusi Akar, and a Turkish Military delegation, including Turkey’s Chief of General Staff, General Yasar Guler, arrived in Tripoli. They were welcomed by the GNA’s Minister of Defence Salah al-Din Namroush, its Chief of Staff, Mohammed al-Haddad, and the commanders of the GNA Military Zones at an official ceremony at the Abu Sitta Naval Base. On 27 December, an Egyptian delegation arrived in Tripoli for an official visit– their first official visit to Tripoli since 2014. The Egyptian officials include representatives from the Egyptian Ministry of Defence and various foreign affairs departments. Among the delegation were representatives from the Egyptian Ministry of Defence and various foreign affairs departments. It included the Deputy Head of Intelligence, Ahmed Badea, who will meet with his PC/GNA counterparts of the Libyan Intelligence Service. According to a GNA official speaking to local media, the delegation will also meet with the head of the GNA, Fayez al-Serraj. |