While welcoming the signing of an agreement for a ceasefire in Libya on the same day, the European Union and NATO insisted on its implementation on Friday 23 October.
“This is a crucial step for the resumption of political negotiations and, hopefully, a turning point in the Libyan crisis”, stressed the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, on Twitter. “The EU will be there to provide support” he added.
A few minutes earlier, the spokesperson for the European External Action Service, Peter Stano, welcomed the announcement of the agreement. “It is important to see it implemented. We know that this will be more difficult than signing the agreement”, he explained to the media. The spokesperson added that this implementation would be “the key” to the resumption of political negotiations, as these were “a precondition for the EU to deliver all the support it has promised”.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also welcomed the agreement. He called on all parties to respect and implement the ceasefire, noting that this had not always been the case in the past. “We have taken an important step in the right direction, so let’s do everything we can to ensure that the (cease-fire) is implemented”, he added after the meeting of allied defence ministers.
The Libyan parties have signed an agreement for a permanent and immediate ceasefire throughout Libya. Military units are to return to their camps and foreign fighters will have to leave the country within three months. The parties also agreed to increasing oil production. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)