Russian FM urges UN-led peaceful settlement in Libya

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov urged on Saturday a peaceful settlement in war-torn Libya and efforts of the UN Security Council (UNSC) to launch dialogues between Libyan rival parties.

Lavrov made the remarks at a joint press conference with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry in Cairo, where they discussed bilateral ties and regional issues of mutual concern.

"We discussed how to deal with this issue and raise it in the UNSC, and we call for not accusing any specific party in the crisis," said the Russian foreign minister.

The self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Khalifa Haftar started on Thursday a military campaign to take over the capital Tripoli.

Tripoli is home to the UN-backed unity government led by Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, known as the Government of National Accord (GNA).

Lavrov blamed the NATO alliance for the current crisis, saying the bloc's 2011 campaign in Libya "resulted in terrorism, illegal immigration and other issues in the country."

Some Libyan armed groups threatened to use forces and warplanes against the LNA, he said, stressing Russia supports putting an end to the escalations and sitting together for dialogue.

For his part, Shoukry reiterated Egypt's support for a political settlement, not a military one, to the Libyan crisis, as well as the efforts of the UN envoy to Libya in this regard.

"The crisis in Libya will not be resolved through military means but through dialogue, consensus and expression of the will of the Libyan people," the Egyptian foreign minister said.

The United Nations seeks to hold a conference in the Libyan southwestern town of Ghadames on April 14 to 16 to pave the way for elections in the North African country to end its factional confrontations.

UN Special Envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame said on Saturday that the conference will be held as planned despite the ongoing surge in fighting, noting that he has been striving to prevent the new clashes from getting out of control.

Since the ouster and killing of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libyan factions have been engaged in a civil war that escalated in 2014 and resulted in divided power between two rival governments.