Libya’s Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj has said in an interview with Al-Jazeera that he will not sit with Gen. Khalifa Haftar again, hoping that his supporters would review their decisions.
Within part of the interview the news channel broadcast on Tuesday, Al-sarraj stressed that Abu Dhabi interfered in his country by supporting Haftar, adding that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has no common borders with Libya, which “raises a question about its goals of interfering in Libya.”
Al-Sarraj also questioned the reasons why the UAE is establishing a military base on his country’s territories.
The prime minister stressed that he would respect the Berlin conference’s call for a cease-fire and political talks but he wouldn’t sit with Haftar again.
On Sunday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres co-hosted the Berlin Conference, which sought a stronger commitment from the world powers and regional actors to non-interference in Libya and genuinely support the cease-fire and adhere to the UN’s arms embargo.
Regarding the oil issue, Al-Sarraj said Libya would face a catastrophic situation if Haftar forces continued blockading the oil fields expressing his hope that foreign powers would put pressure on Haftar to reopen the oil ports soon.
On Jan. 12, the conflict parties announced a cease-fire in response to a joint call by the Turkish and Russian leaders. However, the talks for a permanent cease-fire deal ended without an agreement after Haftar left Moscow without signing the deal.
On Sunday, Haftar accepted in Berlin to designate members to a UN-proposed military commission with five members from each side to monitor implementation of the cease-fire.
Since the ouster of late ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, two seats of power have emerged in Libya: warlord Khalifa Haftar in eastern Libya, supported mainly by Egypt and the UAE, and the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli, which enjoys the UN and international recognition.
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