An agreement was announced in Libya to allow the flow of oil again after a hiatus of many months.
This development comes amid indications that a political settlement to the Libyan crisis can be reached soon, including the formation of a new executive authority.
Retired Major General Khalifa Haftar announced - on Friday in a televised speech - the resumption of oil production and exports, after a siege imposed by his forces on the oil installations that they control most of them with the support of Russian mercenaries.
Haftar said that the re-flow of oil from fields under his control and then exported abroad, would be "with all the conditions and procedural measures necessary for a fair distribution of its revenues to the Libyans."
He added that oil revenues should not be used to support what he called terrorism, but rather to improve the standard of living of citizens.
However, Haftar said at the same time that all the initiatives that he announced under the slogan of dealing with the Libyan crisis ended in failure, and that these initiatives work to prolong the crisis, adding that they neglected the suffering of the Libyan citizen to the expense of the struggle for power, as he put it.
The US embassy in Tripoli said earlier that it had obtained a pledge from Haftar to lift the siege imposed on oil installations since last January.
Later, Ahmed Al-Mismari, a spokesman for the retired Libyan general, said that it was agreed between the Libyan parties to resume oil exports, indicating that they are ready to open the oil fields for a month.
He added in a press conference in Benghazi (eastern Libya) that the agreement was concluded with the Vice President of the Libyan Presidential Council Ahmed Maitiq, noting that the agreement includes the formation of a joint technical committee headed by Maitiq, which will manage the production and sale of oil and the distribution of revenues to the three regions (Tripoli, Barqa and Fezzan) .
Sanalla said that he would not allow the mercenaries of the Russian Wagner Company to play a role in the oil sector (Reuters)
Fair distribution
A member of the Presidency Council of the Government of National Accord, Ahmed Maitiq, confirmed the agreement, explaining that it includes the formation of a joint technical committee between the Libyan parties to oversee oil revenues, and it is not clear whether the reconciliation government has accepted the agreement or not.
Maitiq said - in a statement - that the committee is responsible for ensuring the equitable distribution of resources and implementing the terms of the agreement during the next three months, provided that its work will be evaluated at the end of the year.
The tasks of the joint committee also include - according to Maitiq - handling the public debt of both parties and providing a mechanism to pay it off, and the committee will continue its work until the formation of a government of national unity that will take over the administration of the country.
The agreement announced by the Libyan official included: unifying the foreign exchange rate, opening bank transfers in the country, and supporting the National Oil Corporation to conduct its business.
The distribution of oil revenues to Libyan regions was a condition set by Haftar to allow the resumption of crude production and exports.
The National Oil Corporation in Libya expressed its regret over the politicization of the oil sector and its use as a bargaining chip in negotiations that it described as futile to achieve political gains.
The head of the Libyan National Oil Corporation, Mustafa Sanallah, said that the negotiations taking place in an irregular manner could not be done with the removal of force majeure from the oil installations, adding that he would not allow the Russian mercenaries of Wagner to play a role in the oil sector.
Sanalla revealed that there are negotiations that the corporation is conducting in coordination with the President of the Presidential Council of the Government of National Accord and the international community, including an initiative to operate oil ports safely, protect users and people in production and export areas, and leave all armed groups out of there.
In turn, the Central Bank of Libya denied its connection with any understandings related to the distribution of the country's oil revenues, commenting on the agreement that was announced.
Solution indications
The announcement of the oil agreement comes ahead of upcoming talks in Geneva between the Supreme Council of the State and the House of Representatives meeting in Tobruk (eastern Libya), in an effort to agree on mechanisms for managing the next phase and unifying the military, security, legislative and financial institutions.
The two parties recently held dialogue sessions in the Moroccan city of Bouznika (south of the capital, Rabat), which resulted in an understanding on restructuring the Presidency Council and holding presidential and legislative elections within 18 months.
And Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov - today in statements reported by the Russian agency Sputnik - spoke of very positive changes in Libya.
Lavrov praised the results of recent regional and international meetings and moves in the Libyan file, indicating that Moscow will continue to work with Turkey in this direction.
On Wednesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced that Ankara and Moscow were close to an agreement on the criteria for a ceasefire and the political process in Libya.
In an indication of the likelihood of the success of the next Libyan dialogue in Geneva, Fayez al-Sarraj, head of the Presidency Council of the Libyan Government of National Accord, announced - yesterday evening, Thursday - that he intends to hand over his duties to a new executive authority at the end of next October, at the latest.
Today, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his regret for this announcement, and said that his country would hold talks with the reconciliation government in this regard.