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By PAOLO SANTALUCIA, Associated press
PALERMO, Sicily (AP) – Italian Prime Minister Tuesday held a meeting of rival Libyan leaders on the sidelines of a conference aimed at helping his former colony to suppress Islamist militants and human trafficking.
But Turkey's exclusion from the mini-summit prompted the Turks to withdraw early, adding a drama to the two-day conference being held in a seaside resort on the picturesque Sicilian coastline.
The photos of the meeting showed Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte presiding over a handshake between the Tripoli-backed US Prime Minister Fayez Serraj and his rival General Khalifa Hifter, commander of the so-called Army Libyan national center based in the East.
Other leaders attending the Palermo conference, including French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, and US envoy Ghassan Salame also participated in the conference. The office of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who supports Hiftar, confirmed that he had joined the "mini-summit" on Tuesday with Mr Conte and other leaders.
The Italian populist government has organized this two-day conference in the hope of making progress on the path of lifting anarchy in Libya and promoting a North American framework for the holding of elections.
But expectations were limited, with the Hiftar camp making it clear that he was not attending the conference itself, but rather meeting the leaders of neighboring countries on the sidelines. Neither Hiftar nor el-Sissi posed for the group photo of the final conference.
And the Turkish Vice President, Fuat Oktay, retired before the end of the meeting, citing his exclusion from the morning mini-summit.
"The informal meeting, which took place this morning with a number of actors and presented them as eminent protagonists of the Mediterranean, is a very misleading and damaging approach to which we vehemently oppose", a- he told the press.
"Turkey is leaving the meeting with deep disappointment," he said.
An Italian diplomatic official told reporters in Palermo that the atmosphere of the mini-meeting was cordial and collaborative and that Hiftar had asked Serraj to stay in charge until the elections.
A spokesman for Hiftar's army, Ahmed al-Mesmari, said Tuesday on social media that Hifter was snubbing the enlarged conference, accusing representatives of the Tripoli party of working with militias that he considers illegitimate, as well as Islamist extremists backed by Qatar. .
In an interview with his press office, Hiftar said he wanted to meet with African leaders, in particular, to discuss migration.
"We are still at war and the country must secure its borders," said Hiftar.
Libya sank into chaos after the 2011 uprising that overthrew and killed dictator Moammar Gaddafi, and is now ruled by rival administrations to the east and west, both of which are in danger. relying on militia support.
It has also become a haven for Islamic militants and armed groups, including several nationals of neighboring countries, who survive through looting and human trafficking, particularly in the south of the country.
The Italian anti-immigrant government is particularly keen to stem the network of migrants smugglers based in Libya, who have sent hundreds of thousands of potential refugees to Europe via Italy in recent years.
Producer AP Maggie Hyde in Palermo; Brian Rohan in Cairo and Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed.
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