Palermo Conference

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The Palermo Conference was a two-day long conference which took place in Palermo, Sicily on 12–13 November 2018[1] to discuss United Nations policy concerning Libya.[2] Organized by Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte,[citation needed] it was attended by delegations from 38 countries, including Russia, the United States, Egypt, Tunisia, Turkey, as well as representatives of many rival Libyan factions fighting for power in the country.[citation needed]

Attendants included Libyan prime minister Fayez al-Sarraj,[citation needed] Libyan field marshal Khalifa Haftar,[2] Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi,[2] Tunisian president Beji Caid Essebsi,[2] Qatari Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani,[citation needed] Libyan parliamentary speaker Aguila Saleh,[2] and Khalid al-Mishri[2] speaker of the upper chamber in the Libyan capital, Tripoli.

Turkey's delegation, headed by Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay, withdrew from the conference on 13 November as a result of the exclusion of Turkish officials, on Haftar's insistence, from a private meeting between the conflict's key players.[3]

While the conference led to no significant breakthroughs, it marked the first occasion on which Italy legitimized Haftar as a party in Libyan peace negotiations since the 2016 conclusion of the agreements that led to the establishment of the Government of National Accord.[4] Haftar, who had made a surprise visit to Moscow earlier that month, was initially reluctant to attend the Palermo talks.[3] He was likely convinced by Egypt and Russia to take part in the event.[4][5]

Italian lawmaker Marco Zanni praised the conference. He was quoted as saying "The conference for Libya in Palermo has been a fundamental step in order to stabilize Libya and for the security of the entire Mediterranean". adding that the event constituted Italy's attempt to take a leading role in the Libyan peace process.[citation needed]

List of participating countries[edit]

The countries that participated in the conference are listed below.[6]

Supranational organizations[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Palermo Conference on Libya". www.imperialvalleynews.com. 15 November 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-11-15. Retrieved 2018-11-16.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Renegade General Khalifa Haftar joins Libya conference in Palermo". www.aljazeera.com. Archived from the original on 2018-11-14. Retrieved 2018-11-16.
  3. ^ a b Talmiz, Ahmad (23 November 2018). "Palermo conference tries to tame Libyan factions". Arab News. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  4. ^ a b Lukyanov, Grigory (16 November 2018). "The Palermo Conference on Libya: Any Achievements?". Valdai Discussion Club. Archived from the original on 25 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  5. ^ De Giovannangeli, Umberto (26 October 2018). "La Russia a Palermo "garantirà" la presenza di Haftar". L'Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 25 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  6. ^ Zaptia, Sami (14 November 2019). "Palermo Libya conference makes no major breakthrough, postpones elections, reaffirms LPA and Action Plan". Libya Herald. Archived from the original on 3 December 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
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