CAIRO: The Egyptian Foreign Ministry has urged rival Libyan officials meeting in Cairo to “seize the opportunity of their presence together during this round of talks to address issues.”
The ministry said it was aware of the sensitivity and difficulty of the issues but affirmed its confidence in the capabilities and commitment of the participants to support the interests of the Libyan people.
A second round of talks began on Sunday in the presence of all members of the House of Representatives Committee, the “Higher Council of State,” and the acting UN envoy to Libya Stephanie Williams amid high hopes that a solution could be reached to end the political crisis.
The talks began with a speech by the host nation in which it expressed its support for the constitutional process on which the Libyans have pinned their hopes. The ministry said that the eyes of 7 million Libyans were on the talks and it hoped “the outcomes of these meetings rise to the ceiling of the aspirations of the Libyans in approving a constitutional framework.”
It also expressed its confidence that the efforts of the joint committee would put Libya on the path to stability, security and development, stressing that Cairo would continue to sponsor the Libyan constitutional track based on its ties and balanced relations with all parties.
The ministry confirmed that previous meetings, in Cairo in October 2020 and Hurghada in January and February 2021, and the first round of the current talks on April 13-18 had paved the way for the high-level political consultations held over the past two weeks.
It also commended the efforts of Williams, “and the work team of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya in facilitating this meeting, and supporting the task of the meeting with the ideas and tools necessary to complete it to the fullest.”
Williams said at the opening session: “Time is running out fast and the Libyan people are more anxious than ever for stability.
“As you know, the work of this committee began on April 13 and therefore we will finish its work on May 28, meaning within 45 days.
“In everything I do, my message is … After more than a decade of turmoil, the Libyan people are tired of war and endless competition over the Libyan executive and economic resources, and they want to choose their representatives so that their long-awaited dream of stability and prosperity can come true.”
She continued: “A month has passed since our last meeting, and Libya is still at the same critical juncture, for which there is no solution but to move toward comprehensive, fair, transparent and credible national elections to respect the will of the 2.8 million Libyan citizens who have registered to vote.”
The first round of consultations concluded last month without an agreement. The Supreme State is calling for the formulation of a constitutional rule that leads to elections, while Parliament demands the amendment of “controversial” texts between the two councils in the constitution in accordance with the 12th amendment it issued two months ago, provided that it is put to a referendum as a constitution, on the basis of which parliamentary and presidential elections are held.
