Western 6 Dec 16

Dec 6, 2016 | International actors

UN Envoy Martin Kobler has insisted that he will not give up on getting the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA) and the GNA approved by the HoR, while also denying that he is considering resignation. On November 29, Kobler flew to Tobruk to meet with HoR Vice President Emhemed Shuaib, in an attempt to reactivate an HoR vote on the LPA. However, news of Kobler’s arrival spread quickly. Anti-GNA demonstrations were triggered, forcing Kobler to stay at the airport to met Shuaib.

In an open conversation with the Libya Herald on 3 December, Kobler said that the LPA is not set in stone, indicating that re-negotiation of certain points in the 2015 Skhirat agreement is possible, including notably those preventing Marshal Khalifa Haftar remaining in control of the LNA. In that interview, Kobler also lamented the militia clashes in Tripoli, saying they exposed the failure of the security arrangements section in the LPA. Kobler highlighted that a meeting will be held in New York at the UN Security Council on 6 December to take stock of the LPA process as a whole, which may lead to an extension of the UNSMIL mandate.