On Wednesday 9 July, the European Commission cited a “protocol” problem to explain the refusal of the authorities in eastern Libya, the previous day, to allow the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Magnus Brunner, accompanied by the Italian, Greek and Maltese interior ministers, to continue his mission in the country.
After holding a meeting in Tripoli with Libya’s UN-recognised government of national unity, the European officials were abruptly stopped in Benghazi, the territory of Marshal Haftar.
In a press release, the government of the State of Libya explained that it had interrupted the visit to Benghazi airport because the Europeans had not complied with the provisions on visas or authorisation to travel in the country. The fact that the Europeans first passed through Tripoli is another explanation for this sudden turnaround.
Commissioner Magnus Brunner nevertheless issued a statement on X on Tuesday evening. “We just concluded our mission to Libya together with the Ministers responsible for migration from Greece, Italy and Malta. In Tripoli, we held in-depth discussions with Prime Minister Dbeibeh, Foreign Minister Al-Baour, Interior Minister Trabelsi, and Labour Minister Al-Abed. We discussed shared challenges in the area of migration and reaffirmed a joint commitment to combat migrant smuggling. This mission laid the groundwork for broader cooperation. The meetings planned in Benghazi could not take place in the end.”
The situation in Libya is critical, with the EU particularly concerned about an increase in migrants leaving the country for the EU. “The EU must engage” with the country’s authorities, given the consequences in terms of migration, the Commission said on Wednesday.
It also remains “ready to work with all the key players in Libya”. In fact, this mission was a “first step towards relaunching exchanges”.
At the end of June, the Commissioner spoke at a public event about Russia and Belarus exploiting migration from Libya to the EU. He also deemed it essential to cooperate with the Libyan authorities, even if they were deemed “dubious”. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)