Muscat and Pence talk Libya in first conversation

US President Elect Donald Trump undoubtedly has his sights set on the more than troubling situation in Libya, eager as he is to live up to his pledge to wipe out the Islamic State, which has planted roots in Libya, as well as showing he can handle the situation in Libya after his presidential rival Hillary Clinton was pilloried over the killing of an Ambassador in Benghazi under her watch as US Secretary of State.

With Trump on the fringe of assuming power in the US next month, he is already laying the groundwork of how, exactly, he will go a step futher than his predecessor Barack Obama. Enter Joseph Muscat, the leader of the Western country closest to Libya.

The Department of Information yesterday morning issued a short statement to the effect that Dr Muscat had a telephone conversation with US Vice-President Elect Mike Pence. It was a terse statement that informed how the Prime Minister “conveyed his best wishes to the President and Vice President elect. The two discussed bilateral relations between Malta and the United States, the upcoming Maltese Presidency of the European Union and the situation in Libya.”

But sources with information on what was really behind that conversation have informed this newspaper that the be all and end all of that conversation was Libya, and how Malta could help the incoming Trump administration with the looming situation.

While the real contents of that conversation have not been made public, it is rather telling that the incoming US Vice President, who undoubtedly has an awful lot on his plate at the moment, had time to make such a call and it is highly doubtful that such a conversation was a mere exchange of platitudes, as yesterday’s short press release portrayed. There is undoubtedly a lot more going on behind the scenes than what immediately meets the eye.

The Libyan capital Tripoli is currently witnessing the worst militia clashes in the last two years, with heavily-armed militias vying for power and control over the city, with one dislodging another in at least two posts, a five-star hotel and a barracks, in what appears to be the worst outbreak of violence the city has seen in two years.

In a statement on Friday, UN Envoy to Libya Martin Kobler called for a halt to the fighting, saying he is “extremely alarmed.”

“It’s completely unacceptable for armed groups to fight to assert their interest and control, particularly in residential areas, terrorizing the population,” he said.

The UN-brokered unity government’s spokesman Ashraf alTulty said that a ceasefire agreement has been reached among warring militias but revealed no further details. Given the fluidity of the situation, it remains to be seen whether the victors of the clashes will back the internationally recognized body.

“This is a struggle over power. Each of the warring parties has its political and ideological agendas,” said Sami al-Atrash, a Tripoli resident and a legal expert. “The clashes are belated. They were expected at any moment and finally happened,” he said.

In a statement yesterday, Maltese political party and a frequent interlocutor with different sides of the Libyan political factions Alleanza Bidla expressed grave concern that fresh attacks and violence have erupted once again in Tripoli

AB leader Ivan Grech Mintoff commented: “From the information that we are receiving from both sides, the attacks are on a very large scale, involving tanks, heavy artillery and rocket launchers and snipers. Tripoli is a city with around three million civilians who are now trapped in this present mess. Innocent civilians are being killed indiscriminately and over 500 people are hospitalised in the first day of fighting.

“Military action is never the solution and we must all strive harder for a full and final diplomatic resolution that will return peace and stability to Libya itself and to our region. I urge the Libyan authorities, the Maltese government, the UN, the EU, Russia, America, the UK and all other key players to join us and demand an immediate ceasefire, and if it is not possible for the fighting to be taken out of Tripoli itself, away from further civilian casualties.”