Merkel in phone diplomacy with Putin, Erdogan over conflicts in Libya, Syria
German Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday stepped up her phone diplomacy in attempts to find ways to solve the conflicts in Libya and Syria.
She had a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the importance of expanding political and diplomatic efforts to solve the crisis in Libya, the Kremlin said.
Mediation by Germany and the United Nations was a factor in this, it added.
A spokesman for the German government said that a further exchange had been agreed upon in order to intensify “diplomatic efforts to find a solution.”
Putin said earlier this month that he supported the German peace initiative for the north African country.
The oil-rich country was thrown into chaos and civil war after the overthrow of longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
A UN-backed government is competing for power with a rival government based in Libya’s east, led by Khalifa Haftar.
Haftar’s forces have been moving closer to Tripoli over the weekend.
Merkel also spoke about options for a diplomatic solution with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who recently said Ankara was ready to send troops to Libya should the internationally recognised government ask for them.
Libya’s UN-backed government yesterday denied claims that Turkish-backed Syrian rebels were fighting alongside its own forces in battles around the capital Tripoli.
The situation in Syria was another topic of the phone conversation, a government spokesman in Berlin said.
The Syrian government and its ally Russia have increased their attacks on the last rebel stronghold in Idlib.
The airstrikes are forcing some 235,000 people to flee, according to the UN, most towards Turkey.
The country is already hosting some 3.6mn Syrian refugees.
Erdogan has warned that the fighting could push increasing numbers of refugees towards Europe again.
• Turkey will not withdraw from its observation posts in the Syrian rebel bastion province of Idlib which has seen an increase in violence carried out by regime forces supported by Russian airstrikes, the defence minister said.