Menfi reviews political developments and elections with ambassadors accredited to Libya

Presidential Council President Mohamed Menfi received a number of ambassadors and representatives of countries accredited to Libya at the council’s headquarters in Tripoli on Sunday to discuss the latest political, economic and security developments in the country.

The meeting addressed efforts to reach a comprehensive political settlement that would end the transitional phases and lead to presidential and parliamentary elections based on a legal and constitutional framework, without exclusion or marginalization.

Menfi reaffirmed the Presidential Council’s support for any genuine national consensus that brings the country closer to elections and shortens the transitional process, expressing the council’s readiness to support any agreement that meets the necessary legal and national requirements and strengthens the protection of the electoral process and its institutions.

He stressed the need to move forward with preparations for elections while simultaneously addressing contentious issues and making use of existing electoral institutions. He also warned against arrangements that could prolong the transitional period and emphasized respect for state sovereignty and the mandates of its institutions.

Menfi also called for stronger efforts to combat corruption, the smuggling of state resources, organized crime and impunity, saying that a political settlement and the rule of law are inseparable paths.

He urged international partners to support a Libyan-led process that leads to free and fair elections within clear and achievable timelines, stressing that the Libyan people and the ballot box are the source of legitimacy and the path toward ending the transitional phases and establishing permanent institutions.