Swiss foreign minister reiterates support for Libya’s election roadmap

World leaders recently held a summit in Paris on Libya. (L-R) German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, Head of the Presidential Council of Libya Mohamed al-Menfi, Libyan Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dabeiba and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi at the end of the International Conference on Libya in Paris, France, on November 12, 2021. Keystone / Filippo Attili Handout

Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis held talks in Libya on Sunday on the peace process, highly anticipated elections and Swiss humanitarian work in the North African country.

Cassis met Libya’s prime minister, Abdelhamid Dabeiba, the head of the Libyan Presidential Council, Mohamed al-Menfi, and foreign minister, Najla Mangoush, in Tripoli.

“Switzerland supports the roadmap for the electoral process set out by the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum (LPDF) and welcomes the holding of elections,” Cassis said in a statementExternal link on Sunday following his one-day visit.

Parliamentary and presidential elections on December 24 were demanded by a United Nations political forum last year as part of a roadmap to end Libya’s civil war. However, disputes over the rules of the election threaten to derail the UN-backed peace process.

Elections

On November 18 Libya’s former interior minister announced his bid to run for president in the much-anticipated elections next month that face growing uncertainty.

Fathi Bashagha is the fourth candidate to join the race, which has so far seen three controversial figures announce their bids, including a son of the country’s late dictator Moammar Gaddafi.

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the one-time heir apparent, recently filed his official candidacy papers in the southern town of Sabha. Saif al-Islam, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity, spent recent years in hiding after he was released from a militia-run prison in the town of Zintan in June 2017.

During his talks, Cassis reiterated Switzerland’s support for lasting peace and stability in the country. The officials also discussed issues relating to migration, human rights and the humanitarian situation in Libya.

Switzerland’s humanitarian aid for Libya focuses on the protection of civilians. It works with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the World Food Programme, and NGOs on the ground. This year it has provided CHF5 million ($5 million) to help fund medical care for the most vulnerable and measures to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.

This was the first visit to Libya by a Swiss minister since 2010. It marked the end of a four-day trip that also took Cassis to Slovenia and Saudi Arabia.

Local reaction

In an exclusive interviewExternal link with Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, Cassis said his visit was “largely dedicated to implementing the Swiss strategy in the region, which builds on Switzerland’s long-standing commitment in the areas of conflict prevention, humanitarian aid, and development cooperation.”

“We also seek to highlight the opportunities available to Swiss companies in the Saudi market, as well as our relentless pursuit to harness the potential of the young, well-educated workforce and work to promote digitisation and new technologies,” he said.

In the same interview, Cassis stressed the importance of the Riyadh Agreement on the conflict in Yemen. “We strongly believe in the importance of a comprehensive and peaceful solution for the future of Yemen, and that is why Switzerland urges all parties to abide by international law and stop attacks on civilians,” he said.

On the situation in Libya and his vision for the future of this Middle Eastern country, Cassis said: “Switzerland has been supporting the UN-led peace process for many years and is an active member of the Berlin process. We also co-chair the working group on international humanitarian law and human rights. We have supported a number of important meetings of Libyan actors as a host country, and we will continue to provide our services and will continue to stand by Libya on its path to sustainable peace and unity.”

For his part, the President of the Libyan Presidential Council, Muhammad Al-Manfi, through the Council’s official Facebook pageExternal link, praised the role of Switzerland in achieving stability in Libya, by hosting several meetings between the Libyan parties, under the auspices of the United Nations.