On 18 August, Libyan National Army (LNA) Deputy Commander Lieutenant General Saddam Haftar arrived in Moscow and met Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov. Talks focused on military cooperation, including deepening existing training and exchange programmes.
On 19 August, Russian President Vladimir Putin received Saddam Haftar at the Kremlin. In the media around the event, Putin publically praised LNA Commander-in-Chief Khalifa Haftar and his LNA while paradoxically also expressing support for unifying Libyan institutions and preserving the country’s territorial integrity.
The same day while Saddam was in Moscow, Khalifa Haftar met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in El-Alamein. Haftar was accompanied by his other sons Khaled, LNA Chief of Staff, and Belqasim, Director of the Libya Development and Reconstruction Fund, while al-Sisi was joined by his intelligence chief Major General Hassan Rashad.
On 22 August, Saddam Haftar flew south to meet Rashad in El Alamein to discuss Libyan and regional developments.
On 26 August, High State Council (HSC) Speaker Mohamed Takala met Russian Ambassador Aydar Aganin to discuss Libya’s political stalemate, prospects for elections, and ways to strengthen Libya–Russia cooperation.