“The international community must speak in one voice terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” said the Indian Foreign Secretary…reports Asian Lite News
Expressing concern over continued presence and activities of ISIL in Libya, India at a UN Security Council briefing on Thursday said that the international community must ensure that terrorist groups and its affiliates must not be allowed to operate in Libya.
Noting that the continued presence and activities of ISIL in Libya as illustrated by the latest report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Management Team of 1267 Committee are of serious concern, he added that the report indicates spread of such activities into the SAHEL Region as well.
“Libya has become a logistical platform for Al Qaeda affiliates in Mali. This is a matter of great concern due to the potential cascading effect it could have on the SAHEL region,” Shringla cautioned while speaking at the UNSC at the Briefing on UNSMIL (Libya),
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He said it is unfortunate that the issue is not drawing the attention it deserves.
“The international community must speak in one voice terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” the Indian Foreign Secretary emphasized.
Calling for an inclusive and comprehensive national reconciliation process is the need of the hour, he hoped that all parties concerned engage sincerely in this endeavor and urged that the international community to support such a process.
“The sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Libya needs to be safeguarded. The peace process must be fully Libyan led and Libyan owned with no impositions or external interference,” Shringla submitted.
“We also encourage all Libyan parities to continue to make concerted efforts towards unification of all national institutions,” he added.
Stressing upon the need of holding elections as planned on 24 December 2021 in a free and fair manner, the Indian Foreign Secretary said to achieve this, it is vital that the constitutional basis for conducting the elections is agreed upon early.
“Regrettably, consensus in this regard is still elusive,” he noted.
The Indian Foreign Secretary called for provisions of the ceasefire agreement and successive Security Council resolutions need to be respected.
“We need to plan for the disarmament, de-mobilization and re-integration of armed groups and non-state armed actors,” he said.
Stating that India has traditionally enjoyed close and mutually beneficial ties with Libya, Shringla added that the contributions made by Indian enterprises and professionals in critical sectors like energy, manufacturing, education and healthcare continue to support the Libyan economy and society to this day.
“India continues to remain committed to support Libya and the people in their endovour to bring lasting peace in their country. To this end we look forward to working to the government of national unity for providing capacity building and training assistance in mutually identified areas,” he said. (India News Network)
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