Episode (22/7/2020) from "Beyond the News" asked about the messages and goals of American communications regarding the Libyan crisis and ways to settle them, as well as the echo of these messages in the camp of Khalifa Haftar's supporters in light of the external and internal challenges they face.
The White House had mentioned that President Donald Trump discussed in a telephone conversation with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed the importance of reducing the escalation in Libya. Trump had also confirmed the same thing in connection with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, and called for a ceasefire in Libya and the initiation of political negotiations.
Al-Kumati pointed out that Trump's contacts with Al-Sisi and Mohammed bin Zayed were referring to American pressure aimed at stopping the escalation.
On the other hand, the editor-in-chief of the weekly "Al-Mashhad" newspaper, Magdi Shendi, said that the recent American moves are aimed at the Egyptian desire to stop fighting and engage in a political process, noting that Cairo has not stopped contacting the Libyan parties in order to reach a Libyan consensus.
For his part, Muhammad Mukhtar Al-Shanqeeti, professor of political ethics and history of religions, said that the United States has flexibility and understanding for all parties in Libya, in addition to a real fear of the Russian role there.
Al-Shanqeeti added that the American strategic considerations make Washington remind its allies not to overstep their borders in Libya, especially as Sisi’s role there is considered a functional and subordinate role to Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, and France, and does not represent an Egyptian strategic interest.
Al-Shanqeeti stressed that Sisi can only interfere in Libya in one of two ways. The first is to continue the aerial bombardment with the Emirates, as was the case before, and the second is that the Egyptian army penetrates a few kilometers inside the Libyan borders to show strength and search for a place at the negotiating table around Libya.
For his part, Shendi denied that Egypt's role in Libya is merely a functional role, stressing that Egypt will not leave Libya fall prey to terrorist militias supported by Turkey, as he described.