Delegates from rival Libyan administrations on Thursday agreed at talks in Morocco on criteria for appointments to their country's key institutions, a joint statement said.

They also agreed to pause the talks and resume discussions during the last week of September, according to the accord read out by Idris Omran of Libya's eastern parliament.

Initial talks between five members of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) and five from Libya's eastern parliament took place from Sunday to Tuesday, yielding a joint statement pointing to "important compromises", but without divulging details.

The negotiations, dubbed the "Libyan Dialogue" in the coastal town of Bouznika, south of Morocco's capital Rabat, resumed behind closed doors on Thursday, the AFP correspondent said.

In the evening Omran read out a joint statement to reporters saying the delegates had agreed "the criteria, transparent mechanisms and objectives" for key posts.

He did not give further details but said the two sides would meet again during the last week of September to finalise mechanisms "that would guarantee the implementation and activation" of the agreement.

The naming of the heads of Libya's central bank, its National Oil Corporation and the armed forces have been the main points of dispute, according to Libyan media.

Parallel to the Morocco talks, "consultations" took place in Montreux, Switzerland this week between Libyan stakeholders and members of UNSMIL, said Stephanie Williams, the UN's interim envoy to Libya.

The meetings held between September 7-9 were a follow-up to a call made by the rival Libyan administrations on August 22 calling for an end to hostilities and nationwide elections.

Held under the auspices of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, the Montreux talks "provide a basis for all responsible Libyan stakeholders to forge the way forward", the UN envoy said.

Williams also welcomed the meetings in Morocco and said the UN's mission in Libya, UNSMIL, would try to prepare the ground to resume broader Libyan political talks.

"We call upon the international community to shoulder its responsibilities to support this process and to unequivocally respect the Libyan people's sovereign right to determine their future," she said.

Libya has endured almost a decade of violent chaos since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed veteran dictator Moamer Kadhafi.

The crisis worsened last year when military commander Khalifa Haftar, who backs the eastern parliament and is supported by Egypt, the UAE and Russia, launched an offensive to seize Tripoli from the UN-recognised GNA.

Haftar was beaten back earlier this year by Turkish-backed GNA forces and fighting has now stalled around the Mediterranean city of Sirte, the gateway to Libya's eastern oil fields and export terminals.

Morocco hosted talks in 2015 that led to the creation of the GNA.

* This story was edited by Ahram Online