Erdogan and Conte: positive indicators of the Libyan talks in Moscow

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte confirmed that the talks between the Libyan parties under Russian and Turkish sponsorship in Moscow are positive, and the two sides expressed their hope that the upcoming Berlin conference will be the culmination of the talks.

"We have received indications that the meetings held in Moscow on Libya will culminate with a good result, and they will support the Berlin conference," Erdogan said at a joint news conference with Conte.

The Turkish president added that his country is working to make the ceasefire in Libya permanent, indicating that the Turkish delegation will go with the results of the Moscow talks on Libya to Berlin in order to lay a solid ground for the peace process there.

For his part, Conte talked about a prospective agreement between the two parties to the conflict in Libya, and said that if the truce in Libya does not hold, then one cannot speak of stability in the region.

He also stressed that the Turkish-Russian agreement - which was concluded last Wednesday in Istanbul - enabled the achievement of a truce in Libya, and expressed his hope that this would constitute a basis for a lasting peace.

Conte indicated that he had information about a prospective agreement between the parties to the conflict in Libya, noting the final results that might be at the Berlin conference.

On Monday, Russian-Turkish talks began at the level of defense and foreign ministers of the two countries on the settlement in Libya.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that representatives of the parties to the Libyan crisis will soon join these discussions.

The Al-Jazeera correspondent stated that the Russian foreign and defense ministers had separate discussions with the delegations of Khalifa Haftar and the head of the internationally-recognized National Accord government, Al-Sarraj.

The Russian Interfax news agency expected the two sides to sign a ceasefire.

The embassies of the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Britain, and the European Union Mission to Libya announced their welcome to the parties agreeing to a ceasefire.

The last meeting between Haftar and al-Sarraj was in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi in February of last year, then the talks collapsed due to the dispute over a power-sharing agreement, and Haftar moved his forces toward Tripoli in April, extending his influence over areas east and south of the country.

Forgetting the past
The Libyan Prime Minister, al-Wefaq al-Sarraj, had called on Libyans to "turn the page of the past", before he went to Moscow in order to sign a ceasefire agreement with retired Major General Khalifa Hifter.

"I call on all Libyans to turn the page on the past, renounce division and close ranks to move towards peace and stability," al-Sarraj said in a televised speech.

He added, "Never think that we will excessively sacrifice our children and the blood of our martyrs, or sell us the dream of walking towards a civil state."

He pointed out that his government's acceptance of the ceasefire comes from a position of strength in order to preserve the national cohesion and the social fabric of Libya, stressing at the same time Tripoli's military readiness to defeat "the aggressor in the event of any breaches of this agreement."

Al-Sarraj pointed out that the cease-fire is only a first step in "dispelling the illusions of those who aspire to power with the power of arms and dreamers of the return of tyranny, and that the political path that we will undertake will be a continuation of the great sacrifices that were made in the way of establishing the state we dream of."

Berlin Conference
Meanwhile, a German government spokesman confirmed today, Monday, that an international conference on Libya that includes both parties to the conflict and its actors will be held in Berlin on January 19.

At least ten countries, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, are expected to participate in this conference, in addition to Germany, Turkey, Italy, Egypt and the UAE.

The announcement of the summit comes after a fragile cease-fire between the United Nations-recognized national reconciliation government and the forces of Khalifa Haftar, the strong Eastman, came into effect in response to a Turkish-Russian initiative last Wednesday.

On Saturday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on the issue.

In turn, French President Emmanuel Macron stressed today, Monday, that the ceasefire in Libya must be "credible, lasting and verifiable" in order to create favorable conditions for the resumption of the internal Libyan dialogue, according to what the Elysee said today in a statement.

Since the start of the Haftar offensive to take control of Tripoli on April 4, more than 280 civilians and nearly 2,000 fighters have been killed, according to the United Nations, and more than 150,000 Libyans have been displaced.