"If we got to know each other before today" ... details of new dialogues between Haftar and the Italians

The Italian newspaper La Repubblica dealt with the secrets of Italian Foreign Minister Luigi de Mayo's visit to Libya on Tuesday, in the context of a "very sensitive mission" that sheds light on the Italian "political realism" in Libya, the newspaper said.

When he returned to Rome, de Mayo told Italian and international media, "It is clear that Italy has lost a lot of its weight in Libya, and for this it must now restore its natural role as a country friendly to the Libyan people."

The newspaper's correspondent in Libya, Vincenzo Negro, followed the meetings of the Italian minister in Tripoli, then Benghazi, and then Tobruk, during which an apparently friendly dialogue took place with retired Libyan Major General Khalifa Hifter, who was leading an attack to control the capital Tripoli from the hands of the internationally recognized Al-Wefaq government.

The newspaper said that when de Mayo entered the presidential palace in Tripoli on Tuesday morning, he knew very well the boredom of the Libyans for weeks from the Italian position, which stands at the same distance from the legitimate government and from the retired Major General Haftar, who is seeking his attack on Tripoli to topple this government.

A dialogue with the OS
De Mayo began his conversation with President of the Presidential Council of the Government of Accord, Fayez al-Sarraj, saying, "The agreement that you signed with Turkey is an exaggeration, and we consider it destabilizing, and you should have informed us in advance, and this is not a good thing." Although he quickly expressed Italy's support for the National Accord government, he demanded that the relationship with the Turks be stopped and that the Italian consulate in Benghazi controlled by Haftar's forces be stopped.

The newspaper pointed out that the Italian minister initially met with Deputy Prime Minister of Al-Wefaq government, Ahmad Mutaik, and shortly after with Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, he replied strongly to him when they said to him, "We have asked for help from Europe, as we represent a government recognized by the United Nations, and since the fourth From April we are under attack, so we defend ourselves. You did not provide us with arms or even the necessary political solidarity, so what should we do? We are a sovereign state, and for this we signed a defense agreement with Turkey. ”

The Libyan Accord government recently signed two agreements with Turkey, one of which is to delineate areas of maritime influence and the other for military cooperation, and this was met with condemnation from Greece, Cyprus and Egypt.

In his meeting with Al-Sarraj, the Italian Foreign Minister insisted on re-launching the mediation initiative that Rome would like to move to stop the fighting, revealing to the Prime Minister of the Government of Accord that the European Union intends to send a delegation composed of some foreign ministers, led by the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs, Spanish Josep Borrell. .

However, Al-Sarraj boycotted him, saying, "We are defending ourselves from aggression. How can we negotiate with Haftar?" He added, "Now nine Libyan cities have announced their readiness to fight, and these cities will mobilize their forces and will proceed on the way to the end."

At exactly one o'clock in the afternoon, the Italian minister boarded a plane that took him to Benghazi and then to Tobruk, and met the retired Major General Khalifa Hifter and then the Speaker of the House of Representatives held in Tobruk Aqila Saleh.

A dialogue with Haftar
According to the newspaper, the "elder general" tried to stick to his Italian guest, saying, "If I had known you before today, it might have been possible to sign an agreement with you. Let me see you again next month in Rome."

De Mayo spoke to Haftar about Italy's opposition to his military attack, but he did not condemn him with the cruelty that Tripoli had expected, as de Mayo continued to reassure Haftar, revealing to him that Rome would appoint a special envoy to Libya and that this envoy would be higher than the current Italian ambassador, Giuseppe Buccino Grimaldi. This was a music to my ears Haftar that the Libyan general interrupted at one point by saying, "You should be proud of yourself because you can serve as an example for Libyan youth."

"De Mayo gladly accepted the courtesy of Haftar, who has been attacking Tripoli since the fourth of last April. Yes, it is political realism, gentlemen," the newspaper concluded.

Haftar announced a week ago the launch of a "decisive" operation to storm Tripoli in the context of his campaign, which has been continuing since April, against the Libyan capital.