Germany’s top diplomat arrived in Libya on Monday for a previously unannounced visit intended to spur international efforts to resolve the country’s long-running conflict.
It is Foreign Minister Heiko Maas’ first visit to Libya following a summit in Berlin in January, when world powers agreed to a peace process for the war-torn country that has largely fallen flat.
“We see a deceptive calm in Libya at the moment. Both sides and their international allies are continuing to arm the country on a massive scale and are maintaining preconditions for a ceasefire,” Maas said in a statement on his arrival.
Maas is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Fayez Serraj in the capital Tripoli in order to discuss how to achieve peace between the leader of Libya’s internationally recognized government and military strongman General Khalifa Haftar.
Germany’s mediation efforts have focused on preventing foreign intervention in the civil war, which began in 2011.
Serraj has the backing of Turkey and Qatar, while Haftar is supported by Egypt, Russia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
European countries are keen to see the conflict resolved, as chaos in Libya has provided ideal conditions for people-smugglers to operate in the Mediterranean Sea, bringing migrants from North Africa to Europe.
The European Union has launched the Irini naval mission in a bid to enforce a long-flouted UN arms embargo for Libya.
Meanwhile, Germany, France and Italy have launched an initiative to impose EU sanctions on individuals and companies that provide ships and aeroplanes for the transportation of arms.
