The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, called on Monday 27 January for patience in implementing the conclusions of the Berlin conference of 19 January on the ground, while describing the upsurge in violence as “quite worrying”.
Over the weekend, the UN support mission in Libya (UNSMIL) denounced “the continued transfer of foreign fighters, weapons, ammunition and advanced systems to the parties by Member States, including several who participated in the Berlin conference”.
“So let's be a little patient; active, but patient, because the problem will not be solved tomorrow, but we are on a much better track than before the Berlin Conference”, Borrell stressed at a press conference with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas in Berlin, adding that “everyone knew that the results of the Berlin Conference would not automatically be implemented”.
For his part, Mr Maas was more pessimistic. “We have no illusions that it will be a difficult road and that most of it lies ahead of us”, he said. He also regretted that the current developments go “against” what was agreed in Berlin.
The members of the 5+5 Committee (five representatives for Marshal Haftar and five for the Government of National Unity) are due to meet in the coming days in Geneva to discuss the implementation of the ceasefire. According to Borrell, this military meeting “will be the second step, and we must put pressure on all parties to respect the agreement, first of all, and to influence their proxies to respect it as well”.
The foreign ministers of the countries that took part in the Berlin conference could also meet in the next few days to take stock. This meeting could be held on the sidelines at the Munich Conference scheduled for 14-16 February, just before the ‘Foreign Affairs’ Council on 17 February. The High Representative hoped to be able to attend.
Mr Maas also called for the adoption of a resolution by the United Nations Security Council to make the conclusions of the Berlin Conference binding. For this resolution, Russia, a permanent member of the Security Council that supports Marshal Haftar, will have to give its agreement. According to Heiko Maas, such a text would make those who violate the arms embargo aware that it could have consequences for them.
Discussions that promise to be complicated
At the EU level, the ambassadors of the Political and Security Committee began their discussions on Friday 24 January on EU support for the arms embargo and the monitoring of a ceasefire, as requested by the ‘Foreign Affairs’ Council on 10 and 20 January. They discussed the options proposed in a European External Action Service paper. According to several sources, this first debate provided an opportunity for introductory exchanges, as several ambassadors did not yet have a clear mandate from their capitals, since the documents were only sent by the EEAS on Thursday afternoon.
The discussion looks set to be difficult, given the pending question about the disembarkation of migrants recovered at sea by vessels of the operation that would monitor the embargo. According to one source, Member States referred to this at that first meeting. According to another source, discussions about Operation Sophia have not only focused on the issue of ships, as other means - land or air - could be used, including the Crime Information Cell (see EUROPE 12019/35), which was activated as part of the operation on 5 July 2018.
Discussions will resume on Tuesday. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)