The government of the Wallonia Province in southern Belgium said that it had stopped exporting arms to the UAE since June 2017, due to a violation of the arms embargo to Libya, and for its fear of diverting this war equipment to other parties.
In response to a written inquiry from the island, the Wallonia county government spokesman confirmed that the head of the county government had not signed any license to export weapons to the UAE, since he took office last September.
Amnesty International confirmed that the Wallonia County government continues to export weapons to countries that commit violations of international humanitarian law, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt.
The organization confirmed the continued flow of arms shipments, according to reports of the provincial government and the Belgian Central Bank, despite the intervention of the State Council last March to cancel 17 licenses authorized by the head of the provincial government.
She noted that the head of the regional government signed licenses to sell new weapons to Saudi Arabia, despite the commitment of the provincial government to adhere to the contents of a decree on the arms trade.
An American investigation of the relations between Haftar and Venezuela
On the other hand, the Wall Street Journal reported that the United States is investigating suspicious relations between retired Libyan Major General Khalifa Haftar and Venezuela, and illegal oil deals involving Emirati mediators.
The newspaper quoted US, European and Libyan officials as saying that the United Nations and the reconciliation government are participating in the investigations of a Dubai-based shipping company suspected of helping Haftar to market oil in the Mediterranean.
The Wall Street Journal also reported that the United States is also investigating a visit by Haftar to Caracas to broker oil and fuel deals.