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FILE PHOTO: German Ambassador to the United Nations Christoph Heusgen speaks with the media after closed-doors Security Council conferences on Iran at the U.N. head office in New York, U.S., June 24,2019 REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo
New York City (Reuters) – The United States need to not stop United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres from naming a brand-new U.N. Libya envoy to change Ghassan Salame who stopped nearly 5 months ago, Germany’s U.N. Ambassador Christoph Heusgen said on Thursday.
Salame, who headed the U.N. political objective and was charged with attempting to moderate peace, stopped due to the fact that of tension after his last effort at peacemaking in the war-torn, oil producing nation failed.
The United States now wants to split the function to have one individual run the U.N. objective – called UNSMIL – and another person concentrate on moderating peace in Libya, diplomats stated.
” There have actually been questions raised by our U.S. partners with regard to the structure of UNSMIL. We think that, yes, you can discuss that, however … the U.S. should not stop the Secretary-General choosing a follower to Ghassan Salame,” Heusgen told press reporters.
The U.N. Security Council generally greenlights such consultations by consensus, but a few of the 15 members are not in favor of the U.S. proposal to split the role, diplomats said.
Guterres has recommended former Ghana foreign minister and present U.N. envoy to the African Union, Hanna Tetteh, replace Salame and Washington has said it can support her election after Guterres appoints an unique conciliator, diplomats stated.
The United States had actually proposed former Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt to be special envoy, but diplomats stated she had actually withdrawn herself and Washington is now looking for a brand-new prospect.
Libya came down into turmoil after the NATO-backed overthrow of leader Muammar Gaddafi in2011 Because 2014, it has been divided, with an internationally acknowledged government controlling the capital, Tripoli, and the northwest, while military leader Khalifa Haftar in Benghazi rules the east.
Haftar is supported by the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Russia, while the government is backed by Turkey. Guterres has alerted that there were “extraordinary levels” of foreign interference and mercenaries in the oil-producing country.
Reporting by Michelle Nichols; editing by Richard Pullin
