On 20 March, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf accompanied a delegation headed by Special Envoy Richard Norland and Chargè d’affaires Leslie Ordman in a trip to Benghazi. It met with Libyan National Army (LNA) Commander Khalifa Haftar to discuss the importance of Haftar’s supporting UN Special Envoy to Libya Abdoulaye Bathily’s initiative to set a clear path to elections by the end of the year. They also discussed the importance of compelling all foreign fighters, forces and mercenaries to leave the country, with Leaf noting the recent designation of Wagner as a transnational criminal organization, stressing its destabilizing and predatory role in Libya and the region. Leaf also met with the House of Representatives (HoR) Speaker Aqeela Saleh and on 21 March, the US delegation met with the Government of National Unity (GNU) Prime Minister Abdul Hameed Dabaiba in Tripoli.
