US, UK, France, Italy ‘Deeply Concerned’ About Sidra, Ras Lanuf Oil Terminals’ Handover to Libya’s Eastern Government
Following an announcement this week by the Libyan National Army, commanded by rebel General Khalifa Haftar, that the Sidra and Ras Lanuf oil terminals would be handed over to the eastern government’s National Oil Corporation, the governments of France, United Kingdom, Italy, and the United States issued a joint statement on Wednesday expressing serious concern about the move.
Spokesman of the LNA, Ahmed Mismari, had said on television, “All the oil terminals controlled by LNA are being handed over to the National Oil Corporation dependent on the provisional government that is headed by Faraj al-Hassi.”
The Sidra and Ras Lanuf oil fields had been controlled by Ibrahim Jadhran’s Petroleum Facilities Guard, which is sympathetic to the western-based, internationally-recognised Government of National Accord under Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, from the late Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi’s overthrow in 2011 until September 2016, when they were seized by Haftar’s LNA. But earlier this month, Jadhran retook the facilities, but could not retain the terminals when the LNA launched a counteroffensive.
The joint Western statement Tuesday said, “The governments of France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States are deeply concerned about the announcement that the Ras Lanuf and Sidra oil fields and facilities will be transferred to the control of an entity other than the legitimate National Oil Corporation.
“Libya’s oil facilities, production, and revenues belong to the Libyan people. These vital Libyan resources must remain under the exclusive control of the legitimate National Oil Corporation and the sole oversight of the Government of National Accord (GNA), as outlined in UN Security Council Resolutions 2259 (2015), 2278 (2016), and 2362 (2017). UN Security Council Resolution 2362 (2017) condemns attempts to illicitly export petroleum, including crude oil and refined petroleum products, from Libya by parallel institutions which are not acting under the authority of the GNA.”
The four countries said, “Any attempts to circumvent the UN Security Council’s Libya sanctions regime will cause deep harm to Libya’s economy, exacerbate its humanitarian crisis, and undermine its broader stability. The international community will hold those who undermine Libya’s peace, security, and stability to account. We call for all armed actors to cease hostilities and withdraw immediately from oil installations without conditions before further damage occurs.
“In September 2016, the LNA supported the legitimate National Oil Corporation’s work to rebuild Libya’s oil sector for the benefit of the Libyan people. This action served Libya’s national interest. The legitimate National Oil Corporation must be allowed again to take up unhindered work on behalf of the Libyan people, to repair infrastructure damaged after the attack by forces under the direction of Ibrahim Jadhran, and to restore the oil exports and production disrupted by that attack.”
However, there is uncertainty about who would buy the oil from the eastern government. In 2015, the government, based in Tobruk, about 150 kilometres from Egypt, failed in a bid to sell 300,000 barrels of oil, as it could not get buyers, banks, or insurers willing to do business with the Benghazi-based NOC. None of the entities wanted to risk cooperation with an unrecognised government due to the legal implications.