Libya: France announces reopening of its embassy in Tripoli

France will reopen its embassy in Tripoli on Monday 29 March. The announcement was made by President Emmanuel Macron while he was receiving the representatives of the new Libyan transitional government, at the Élysée Palace on Tuesday 23 March.

France also offered to help Libyan forces regain control of their borders.

 

The President of the Libyan Presidential Council, Mohamed al Manfi, and the Vice President, Moussa al Koni, welcomed Paris’ support for the reconciliation and stabilization process underway in Libya.

 

As he left the Élysée Palace, the new president of the Libyan Presidential Council, Mohamed al Manfi, thanked France at least five times for its support for the new transitional authorities.

 

President Macron insisted that France owed “complete” support to Libya.

 

“We owe a debt to Libya and Libyans, which suffered a decade of disorder. It is a challenge for your country and your people. And it’s a stake for the whole region, because there will be no peace in the central and eastern Mediterranean, there will be no peace in the Sahel if we don’t manage to have peace and stability in Libya.”

 

The French president stressed further that Turkish or Russian foreign forces must leave Libya.

 

Paris promised to help the new Libyan government regain control of its borders, which the new Libyan vice-president Moussa al Koni welcomed. “We had a long discussion with the president on the southern border which is also a crossing point for terrorist groups and illegal immigration. And the need to work together to put an end to trafficking of all kinds,” he said.

According to press reports, France would finance the training and equipment of Libyan border guards.