Russia thwarted a pending decision.. The Security Council extends the mandate of the UN mission in Libya for only 3 months

The UN Security Council adopted a resolution extending the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Libya until the end of next October.

The resolution submitted by Britain indicates that the situation in Libya still constitutes a threat to international peace and security, and that it was decided to extend the mandate of the mission as a political mission and within the powers included in previous Council resolutions.

The resolution notes that the mission should be led by a special envoy of the Secretary-General and calls for his urgent appointment.

The resolution called on "all parties to refrain from any actions that would undermine the political process or the ceasefire that was reached on October 23, 2020".

He stressed that there is no military solution in Libya, calling on all concerned parties to fully comply with the arms embargo imposed on Libya, pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1970 (2011).

The resolution also requested the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, to urgently appoint a special representative for him in Libya.

Russian objection

And voted in favor of the resolution during a session of the Security Council held at its headquarters in New York, 12 of the total members of the Council (15 countries), while Ghana, Kenya and Gabon abstained from voting.

Russia opposed the efforts of Western and African countries in the council to extend the mandate of the mission for a year, and stipulated that a head of the mission be appointed first.

The Russian position has led to the extension of the mission's mandate for short periods several times since last September.

"We share our African colleagues' frustration with the mandate's short mandate," British Permanent Representative to the United Nations Barbara Woodward said in her address to council members, following the vote on the resolution.

"We consider that Russia's insistence that the extension be for a period of only three months contributes to undermining the mission's mandate and supporting the political and security tasks for which it is working," Woodward added.

She added that Russia's demands contradict what Libya, the United Nations and the countries of the region want from the mission, as she put it.

African frustration

For their part, the delegates of the three African countries, in their speeches during the session, expressed “their dissatisfaction with the extension of the mandate of the United Nations mission for a period of 3 months only due to the continuing differences between the Security Council regarding the length of the mandate, the restructuring of the mission and the appointment of a leadership for the United Nations Support Mission in Libya.”

On April 29, the Council adopted a resolution extending the mandate of the UN mission in Libya until July 13.

The decision to extend the day is the fifth issued by the UN Security Council since mid-September 2021, while the members of the Council were unable to resolve their differences over the appointment of a new special envoy for the UN mission.

Libya suffers from economic and security crises, as the political crisis escalated by granting the House of Representatives confidence in the government of Fathi Bashagha in early March.

The Prime Minister of the National Unity Government, Abdel Hamid Dabaiba, refuses to hand over power except to a government that comes through a new parliament elected by the people.

From time to time, the main cities in western and eastern Libya witness demonstrations demanding the departure of all existing political institutions, and the holding of elections without delay.