UN hears appeals to enforce Libya arms embargo

The UN Security Council on Monday reiterated the green light to a European Union mission to combat the smuggling of migrants and arms smuggling off the coast of Libya, in the middle of the Middle East. calls for actions to reduce the flow of weapons.

The council voted unanimously to extend the authorization of the Sophia operation until June 2020, more than two months after the start of the offensive launched by the forces of Khalifa Haftar to seize Tripoli, the seat of government recognized by the UN.

Germany told the Council that the delivery of arms delivered in violation of the UN embargo was the main obstacle to the end of the fighting in Tripoli and the resumption of political talks.

"A seemingly unlimited supply of arms feeds the mistaken belief in a military solution to the conflict and contributes to the reluctance of actors on the ground to agree on a ceasefire and resume a political process" said the German ambbadador to the UN, Juergen Schulz.

"It is time to redouble our efforts, to badume our responsibility and … to find ways to finally effectively implement the arms embargo," he told reporters. advice.

Belgium has also expressed its concern over the flow of weapons, as has South Africa.

The resolution, first adopted in 2016, allows ships of the European operation to inspect vessels suspected of carrying arms in the Mediterranean.

The EU, however, suspended naval patrols in March, leaving the air missions to monitor suspicious vessels.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini has urged European countries to return warships to the Mediterranean to help enforce the embargo.

UN envoy Ghbadan Salame last month called for immediate measures to cut the flow of arms to Libya, warning that without prompt action, Libya would sink into a civil war that could lead to a partition of the country .

UN sanctions experts said in a report to the council that missiles launched against pro-Tripoli forces in April had revealed a possible UAV attack that could involve a "third party", possibly the Arab Emirates. United.

Hundreds of people have died and tens of thousands of displaced people in the Tripoli offensive and diplomatic efforts to return to political talks are in stalemate.