Libyan FM urges African leaders at AU Summit to play vital roles in resolving country’s crisis

African leaders met on Sunday in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia for the 33^rd African Union Summit. The leaders gathered at the annual summit to discuss their future plans.

The theme of African Union Summit 2020 is ‘Silencing the Guns’. Apart from this theme, the discussion also focussed on gender equality, human rights and climate change. The Foreign Minister of Libya, Mohamed Taha SIala has made the appeal for greater involvement by Africans in resolving Libya’s crisis.

“It’s the rules, it’s the rules. I did not withdraw and I was not expelled either. Even at the UN Security Council, it is like that. Once you get your message across, you have to leave the room and let the others debate. It’s just an administrative procedure,” Mohamed Taha SIala said.

“My government supports all of these initiatives. The Geneva meeting is the first of its kind where our officers and those of the opposing camp meet. It almost collapsed because of Haftar’s reluctance. The meeting was originally scheduled to take place on January 28 but Haftar’s officers did not attend. It took strong pressure from the international community for Haftar to finally decide to send his representatives,” he added.

“Even if the meetings were held separately, I can say that it is an interesting first step, which could lead to something more important and decisive on the ground. But for that, Haftar and his supporters should not sabotage everything. If the international community is serious about helping the Libyans resolve the conflict, it must also press for an end to foreign interference in the Libyan conflict,” the Libyan Minister continued.

He also shared his belief that Africans should get involved in finding a solution to the Libyan crisis and the AU should play a more active role. According to him, the pan-African organization can opt for working alongside the UN.