Russian President Vladimir Putin has affirmed his commitment to supporting stability in Libya, to expedite the electoral process. This was disclosed during his meeting with the head of Libya’s Presidential Council, Mohammed Al-Menfi, on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa Summit held in St. Petersburg, which concluded on Friday evening.
Putin expressed admiration for Al-Menfi’s speech and the issues it addressed, confirming his keenness to reform the Security Council and activate mutual cooperation between the two nations and revive halted projects via a joint committee, according to a statement issued by the Presidential Council. Al-Menfi underscored the importance of the summit and Russian-African partnership in achieving stability on the continent and global food security, expressing his anticipation for establishing a joint committee between the two countries.
He also pointed out that the Presidential Council possesses a comprehensive vision for achieving stability and is working to implement it in close coordination with the United Nations Special Envoy Abdullah Patel. This requires the support of the Security Council in continuing national reconciliation efforts in partnership with the African Union.
In earlier remarks, Putin had emphasized the significance of achieving true national unity in Libya to prevent it from becoming a battleground for other third-party countries, as reported by Russia Today news website. The Russian President opined that “it is very important to achieve genuine national unity, to prevent Libyan territory from becoming an area of confrontation between third countries”. He noted that his country understands all the difficulties facing this process and will do everything possible to enhance “this positive direction for interaction and cooperation among all forces in Libya”.
From his side, Al-Menfi, speaking at the Russian-African Summit, said that the Council “aspires for Russian leadership, African leaders, and other parties to guarantee the exit of mercenaries and foreign forces from Libya unconditionally and as soon as possible”.
