Libya: political talks to begin early February on elections

Dialogue between the country’s warring sides progressed after discussions in Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco and Switzerland

A Libyan policeman takes a selfie on the seaside promenade in the eastern Libyan coastal city of Benghazi in front of an installation with the city's name on January 13, 2021. AFP

The next round of talks on Libya's political future will be determined in the Swiss city of Geneva at the beginning of February, officials told The National.

Dialogue between the country’s warring sides has recently progressed after talks were held in Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco and Switzerland during the last few months.

The talks have been based on constitutional arrangements to lay down the legal groundwork for presidential and parliamentary elections later this year.

“I think a new executive will be formed during the talks in Geneva,” Lamees BenSaad, a member of the political dialogue, said.

“All is moving forward,” she said.

The discussion is set to start on February 1 and expected to last for five days.

The talks are part of a wider peace process, after years of chaos and warfare, which also involves a military ceasefire and an economic track.

Oil-rich Libya has been driven by civil war since the uprising that ousted long-time dictator Muammar Qaddafi in 2011. The Government of National Accord is based in the capital Tripoli, while the House of Representatives is based in the east.

A fragile ceasefire between the two sides, agreed in Geneva last October, has largely held.

The initiative began in November when the UN gathered 75 Libyan participants in a political dialogue in Tunis aimed at setting a roadmap to the national elections.

First the warring sides will agree to establish a transitional government that will be responsible for preparing the elections, combating corruption and restoring public services across the country.

Three rounds of talks took place last week.

Libyan envoys at UN-backed talks in Egypt agreed last Wednesday to hold a constitutional referendum before the planned elections.

The talks held at the Red Sea resort of Hurghada included 10 members from the eastern Libya-based parliament and the same number from the High Council of State, an advisory body to the UN-supported government in the capital, Tripoli.

At separate talks in Geneva, the representatives agreed on rules for selecting a new three-member presidential council and a prime minister to oversee the run-up to the election.

The third was in the Moroccan city of Bouznika which were “based on the roadmap that emerged from the dialogue” that the UN had pushed for, Ms BenSaad said.

“The talks were concerned about the sovereign positions of the upcoming transitional government,” she said.

For Ahmed Al Bunduq, a member of the Libyan Parliament, the talks in Morocco played an important role in attempts to solve the crisis.

“All locations and areas of Libya will be taken into account when appointing the interim government,” Mr Al Bunduq said.

The sovereign positions in government include the heads and deputies of the central bank of Libya, the administrative control authority, anti-corruption commission and High Electoral Commission.