The United Nations announced that the Libyan talks held in Geneva ended Thursday without achieving sufficient progress to hold elections, noting the search for alternatives to resolve the crisis. Washington also called on the Libyan parties to overcome the remaining differences and remain calm.

At the conclusion of 3 days of talks that took place in Geneva between the Speakers of the Libyan House of Representatives and the State, Aguila Saleh and Khaled Al-Mashri, the United Nations Special Adviser to Libya Stephanie Williams said in a statement that the two parties were able, during the Geneva talks and 3 previous meetings in Cairo, to resolve previous differences, But she added, "Disputes still exist regarding the requirements to qualify to run for office in the first presidential elections."

"Despite the progress made during negotiations this week between the two heads of parliament, disagreement continues over the eligibility conditions of candidates for the first presidential elections," Williams said, stressing that she would submit a full report that includes her recommendations on alternative ways to move forward.

Williams spoke of an unprecedented understanding on a number of long-standing issues, namely the distribution of seats in the two chambers of the Legislative Council, the division of responsibilities between the president and the prime minister, government and local government, determining the number of provinces and their powers, as well as the mechanism for distributing revenues for different levels of government and enhancing the representation of cultural components .

And the UN official added, "I urge the two parliaments to overcome the dispute as soon as possible. Also, I continue to urge all parties and all parties in Libya not to take hasty measures, and I stress the need to maintain calm and stability."

Press release on the high-level meeting on the Libyan constitutional process in Geneva: https://t.co/onNTdhVY9S

— Stephanie Turco Williams (@SASGonLibya) June 30, 2022

Libyan media reported that the differences relate to the possibility of candidacy for those who hold two nationalities or not?

The non-acceptance of those with dual nationalities to run in the elections will lead to the exclusion of retired Major General Khalifa Haftar, who holds American citizenship.

American statement

On the other hand, the US embassy in Libya, in a statement, congratulated the UN advisor "on the progress made in the Geneva talks and on extending her role in the United Nations."

The US embassy urged the House of Representatives and the state to bridge the gap on the "few remaining differences" to hold the elections, and urged continued calm, warning against any effort to achieve political gain by risking violence in Libya.

"It is essential to build on the progress made towards transparent management and control of oil revenues and to restore full production immediately," the embassy added in its statement.

1/3 The US Embassy congratulates SASG Stephanie Williams on progress achieved in the Geneva talks and on the extension of her UN role.

On the political front we urge the HoR and HSC to close the gap on the few remaining differences over a constitutional basis for elections.

https://t.co/2iDLYoVPFM

— US Embassy - Libya (@USEmbassyLibya) June 30, 2022