By Sami Zaptia.
London, 19 February 2021:
Special Envoy Ján Kubiš, ASG/UNSMIL Coordinator Raisedon Zenenga and ASG/Humanitarian Coordinator Georgette Gagnon met yesterday with President of the Presidency Council designate Mohamed Menfi and PC member designate Abdullah El Lafi in Tripoli.
UNSMIL reported that he congratulated them on their election by the Libyan Political Dialogue (LPDF) on 5 January. They discussed ways the UN can support to expedite the implementation of the LPDF Roadmap, including the holding of an official House of Representatives vote of confidence session.
Kubis noted Menfi’s commitment to the LPDF Roadmap including the holding of the elections on 24 December 2021. He expressed the UN readiness to provide all needed technical support to the PC designate in the comping phase, especially in reconciliation and transitional justice efforts and the unifications of state institutions.
Meeting Tripoli Defence Minister
Special Envoy Kubiš, UNSMIL Coordinator Zenenga and HC/RC Georgette Gagnon also met with the Government of National Accord’s Minister of Defence Salaheddine Namroush and MoD senior officials in Tripoli. They discussed the security situation in the country and ways to expedite the implementation of the ceasefire agreement and support the ongoing efforts of the 5+5 Joint Military Commission. They also discussed cooperation on the unification of the military and security institutions and the United Nations support for Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Disarmament Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) efforts.
Meeting HNEC head
They also met with the Head of High National Election Commission (HNEC) Emad Al-Sayeh who briefed on the preparations for the upcoming national elections on 24 December 2021. Al-Sayeh expressed his appreciation to the continuous support of UNSMIL and the international community to HNEC. Kubis said that the United Nations and international partners support fully the holding of the elections, that allows the Libyans to democratically elect their representatives. He reiterated the UN readiness to provide the necessary technical support to HNEC to ensure the success of this democratic process.
Meeting Tripoli HoR
In the same context of his meetings in Gubba yesterday where he met the Speaker of the House of Representatives and a group of HoR members, Special Envoy Kubis, accompanied by UNSMIL Coordinator Zenenga and HC/RC Georgette Gagnon, held a meeting this afternoon with a large group of House of Representatives (HoR) members in Tripoli to exchange views on the way forward, especially with regard to holding an official HoR session as soon as possible. He told HoR members that a vote of confidence, would not only provide a legitimate umbrella to the new interim executive but also sends a strong signal that it has a massive support by the legislative authority.
UNSMIL reported that Special Envoy Jan Kubis will continue to meet Libyan interlocutors today.
