EU foreign ministers convene to discuss new responses to the Libyan conflict
EU foreign affairs ministers will gather today in Brussels to discuss a number of issues, including recent developments in the Libyan Civil War.
Europe, along with the United States, has so far called for a ceasefire, although the issue of whether or not to allow Mr Haftar to retain his territorial gains remains unresolved. France and Italy have taken conflicting stances on this issue, with the former sympathetic to General Khalifa Haftar and the latter supporting of Fayez Al-Sarraj’s UN-backed “Government of National Accord”.
Even if a ceasefire is agreed and implemented, allowing Mr Haftar to keep the land he has taken will only complicate the process of establishing a legitimate sovereign authority in the war-torn country. However, Mr Haftar is highly unlikely to cede the territory he has gained in recent months. Indeed, the only way to force Mr Haftar to cede ground appears to be through the use of force, which European governments and the US are highly unlikely to employ.
Mr Haftar’s antiterrorism accomplishments, like securing many of Libya’s oilfields, further muddies the situation. In the end, only a consistent response from the EU and the international community at large poses any chance of resolving the current crisis in Libya. This will be challenging given the difficulties of reconciling conflicting opinions on who should govern in Tripoli.
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