Libya: the GNA very critical of the Irini system put in place by the EU

European Foreign Minister Josep Borrell at a virtual press conference on the approval of Operation Irini in Brussels on March 31, 2020. REUTERS / Francois Lenoir

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Consultations between members of the European Union are continuing in Brussels to agree on the modalities for the implementation of the new European mission off Libya, announced on Tuesday by the head of European diplomacy. The operation is strongly criticized by the West Libyan camp.

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For Josep Borell, the head of European diplomacy, this new operation, called Irini, aims to control the maritime and airspace to Libya in order to enforce the United Nations arms embargo.

The Government of National Union (GNA) multiplies contacts and accuses the European Union of not having consulted it on this new mission. However, at the Berlin conference last February, the two Libyan parties agreed to respect the arms embargo.

Some members of the Tripoli sector parliament met on Thursday and even accuse the European Union of favoring Khalifa Haftar, the strong man of the East, and of favoring him with this mission.

Without being able to deploy a force on Libyan land borders, the European Union must use ship radars, planes and satellites to collect information on movements to Libya. " Irini is not the solution, but part of the solution to help end the fighting, " said the European Union.

Irini therefore succeeds Operation Sophia , launched in 2015, and completed on Tuesday. But it will have only one mandate: to " respect the embargo imposed by the UN on arms deliveries to Libya, " said the head of diplomacy of the European Union.

Sophia's mission was to fight against the networks of smugglers who transport migrants to Europe via Italy and Malta. Irini, means peace in Greek. Greece allowed this agreement to exist by agreeing to receive the migrants rescued in the Mediterranean in place of Italy which had the command of the operation Sophia and which keeps it for this new operation.

► Read also: Libya: very tense situation after the firing of a Turkish missile

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  • Libya
  • European Union
  • Diplomacy
  • Khalifa Haftar

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