Egyptian delegation's visit to Tripoli overdue, yet important: GNA FM
Ahram Online , Wednesday 30 Dec 2020
The GNA wants Egypt to stand at an equally close distance from all parties involved in Libya to build confidence between them, the GNA foreign minister said


The Egyptian delegation's visit to Tripoli is late, yet critical, said Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) foreign minister Mohamed Siela on Wednesday.

In a press conference with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Siela stated the GNA wants Egypt to stand at an equally close distance from all parties involved in Libya to build confidence between them.

“We call on all countries involved in Libya that thought the military solution was the only way to settle the situation in the country to reconsider their position, support a political solution, and work on getting foreign fighters out of the country,” Siela said.

On Sunday, a delegation from the Egyptian foreign ministry and General Intelligence Service (GIS) landed in Tripoli in the first visit of its kind.

According to Egyptian official sources, the delegation visited Tripoli to ensure commitment to ceasefire and kick off the operation of the UN-supported 5+5 joint military commission.

The delegation also discussed reopening the Egyptian Embassy in Tripoli.

The visit comes a week after GIS chief Abbas Kamel visited Benghazi, where he held a meeting with the commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar and Libyan House of Representative Speaker Aguila Saleh.

In Benghazi, Kamel conveyed a message from President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi to the Libyan people expressing Egypt’s support on various military and political fronts.

The visit came a day after Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar travelled to Libya on an unscheduled visit, with top military officers, Anadolu news agency reported.

Akar's trip came after Haftar had called on the Libyan National Army to "drive out" Turkish forces supporting the UN-backed GNA.

https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/397832.aspx