House Witness on Libya: ‘Moscow’s Foothold in Libya Is Growing’

[anatta]

Moscow’s foothold in war-devastated Libya “is growing” as Russian President Vladimir Putin “increasingly” supports former Gen. Khalifa Haftar, the leader of the opposition to the United Nations-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), an expert on Russian foreign policy tells a House panel.

In March, Gen. Thomas Waldhauser, the head of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), told the Senate Armed Services that Russia’s intervention in Libya, including Putin’s support for Gen. Haftar, dubbed the “new” Muammar Gaddafi, is “very concerning” for the American military.

Although Russia has hosted both Gen. Haftar and Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, who serves as the chief of the GNA, Putin favors the opposition leader.

During a hearing on Russia’s objectives in the Muslim world held Thursday by the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa, Anna Borshchevskaya, an expert on Russian foreign policy at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told lawmakers:

Moscow’s foothold in Libya is growing. This issue is important to watch in the months ahead. Putin increasingly supports Libya’s Gen. Khalifa Haftar, who controls the oil-rich eastern part of the country but wants more. With the fall of Muammar [Gaddafi] in October 2011, Russia lost not only several billion dollars’ worth of investments but also access to the Benghazi port.

Borshchevskaya noted:

Haftar (who served under Qadhafi) pursues an anti-Islamist agenda and looks to Putin to help secure his leadership in Libya at the expense of the UN-backed civilian government. Haftar is a deeply polarizing figure, one that by expert accounts is the wrong choice for the country.

Gen. Waldhauser indicated that Gen. Haftar represents an opportunity for Russia to fill the vacuum left by former President Barack Obama’s administration.

“Russia provides the Tobruk government [led by Haftar] with military advice and diplomatic support at the UN,” the Russian foreign policy expert told the House panel. “In May 2016, Moscow reportedly printed nearly 4 billion Libyan dinars (approximately $2.8 billion) for Libya’s Central Bank and transferred the money to a branch loyal to Haftar.”

Borshchevskaya continued:

In the context of growing tensions with Tripoli, Haftar made two trips to Moscow in the second half of 2016, and in January of this year, he toured the Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov as it returned home from Syrian waters. While aboard the Kuznetsov, Haftar held a video call with Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu and reportedly talked about fighting terrorism in the Middle East. This February, Moscow flew approximately seventy of Haftar’s wounded soldiers to Russia for treatment.

Moscow has denied allegations that it considers establishing military bases in Libya with Haftar’s support, Borshchevskaya pointed out.

“Russia is trying to exert influence on the ultimate decision of who becomes, and what entity becomes, in charge of the government inside Libya,” the AFRICOM chief told Senators in March. “They’re working to influence that decision.”

Russia’s objectives in the Middle East and North Africa are to support other dictators as well as undermine U.S. influence and democratic efforts, the experts told the House members Thursday.

“Putin’s objectives in the Middle East have been consistent both with his domestic behavior and with his approach to other parts of the world: support fellow dictators and undermine efforts at democratization—what his Foreign Police Concept refers to as ‘ideological values … imposed from outside,’” Mr. Vladimir Kara-Murza, the vice chairman of the pro-democracy organization Open Russia,

http://www.breitbart.com/national-s...witness-libya-moscows-foothold-libya-growing/

 

[anatta]

Before you blame Russia,consider who destroyed Libya, (US/NATO) and Qadaffi's pro-western ways

 

[Cancel 2018.1]

Before you blame Russia,consider who destroyed Libya, (US/NATO) and Qadaffi's pro-western ways

I don't blame russia, in fact I prefer somebody helps get Libya under control. I just find it ironic that the left thinks russia is our enemy yet their heros /heroines are who enabled russia into that vacuum.
But even a bad leader is better than no leader - it's in the Tao Te Ching.

 

[anatta]

I don't blame russia, in fact I prefer somebody helps get Libya under control. I just find it ironic that the left thinks russia is our enemy yet their heros /heroines are who enabled russia into that vacuum.
But even a bad leader is better than no leader - it's in the Tao Te Ching.

indeed. Hiftar of Bengazi and the east is still the strongman -not the wussified UN imposed government of Tobruk..

But even a bad leader is better than no leader - it's in the Tao Te Ching.

The country needs another Qadaffi

 

[Cypress]

I don't blame russia, in fact I prefer somebody helps get Libya under control. I just find it ironic that the left thinks russia is our enemy yet their heros /heroines are who enabled russia into that vacuum.
But even a bad leader is better than no leader - it's in the Tao Te Ching.

Yikes. I am getting the impression you have latent, gay-curious titillation with the Russian dictator.

https://img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-s...=715:*&output-format=auto&output-quality=auto

 

[Bill]

I don't blame russia, in fact I prefer somebody helps get Libya under control. I just find it ironic that the left thinks russia is our enemy yet their heros /heroines are who enabled russia into that vacuum.
But even a bad leader is better than no leader - it's in the Tao Te Ching.

Bull they destroyed it to save it, & you know it....

Yea, stability would help in several key areas, including the exploitation of refugees & the constant killings..

Is anyone suggesting dear leader go clean it up??

 

[anatta]

Bull they destroyed it to save it, & you know it....

Yea, stability would help in several key areas, including the exploitation of refugees & the constant killings..

Is anyone suggesting dear leader go clean it up??

Trump is hands off on Libya. He won't touch it ( except maybe to bomb it again like Obama did last year)

The UAE and Egypt are doing occasional bombing runs, but Libya has been basically let on it's own
( UN imposed arms embargo) except for the UN imposed government..
Russia is the most active of the large powers - not even France is involved

It's a bit like Afghanistan was in that the terrorist training camps fuel AQIM in west Africa

 

[Bill]

Trump is hands off on Libya. He won't touch it ( except maybe to bomb it again like Obama did last year)

The UAE and Egypt are doing occasional bombing runs, but Libya has been basically let on it's own
( UN imposed arms embargo) except for the UN imposed government..
Russia is the most active of the large powers - not even France is involved

It's a bit like Afghanistan was in that the terrorist training camps fuel AQIM in west Africa

??Isn't france the cause?? Obama the peace maker was very naive in following those fools IMHO...

 

[anatta]

??Isn't france the cause?? Obama the peace maker was very naive in following those fools IMHO...

Hillary was the deciding voice -he was on the fence.
Gates called her the 51st% voice that swayed the NSC/Obama.

Yes France was the impetus for the whole shooting match

 

[anatta]

Bull they destroyed it to save it, & you know it....

Yea, stability would help in several key areas, including the exploitation of refugees & the constant killings..

Is anyone suggesting dear leader go clean it up??

Operation Sophia: EU’s naval mission in the Mediterranean deemed an 'impossible challenge'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...-naval-mission-in-the-mediterranean-deemed-a/

 

[Cancel 2018.1]

Yikes. I am getting the impression you have latent, gay-curious titillation with the Russian dictator.

https://img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-s...=715:*&output-format=auto&output-quality=auto

Would you prefer the U.S. try to stabilize Libya?
I'd prefer Russia do the dirty work. They're better at it anyway.

 

[anatta]

Would you prefer the U.S. try to stabilize Libya?
I'd prefer Russia do the dirty work. They're better at it anyway.

Libyans do NOT want western help!

 

[Bill]

Has trump said anything on it??

 

[anatta]

Has trump said anything on it??

1 comment.
"we have no stake in Libya" ( paraphrased)
we do of course-but Trump isn't going to go in.

I'm sure he just looks at it as one of those nations he (tried to) put under a travel ban, because the Libyan government cannot control it's borders/immigration.. Lots of problems in Tunisia and even Algeria now bcause of Libya

 

[anatta]

oh yeah. one of his advisors drew plans ona cocktail napkin to partition Libya into it's 3 regions,
but that's not going to happen

Trump aide drew plan on napkin to partition Libya into three
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/10/libya-partition-trump-administration-sebastian-gorka

 

[Bill]

1 comment.
"we have no stake in Libya" ( paraphrased)
we do of course-but Trump isn't going to go in.

I'm sure he just looks at it as one of those nations he (tried to) put under a travel ban, because the Libyan government cannot control it's borders/immigration.. Lots of problems in Tunisia and even Algeria now bcause of Libya

Lot easier to fuck places up than to fix them..... He is sending in more "boots on the ground" in the graveyard of empires.

What the hell yea gonna do w/ a thousand more when you couldn't close the deal w/ 100,000???

 

[anatta]

Sergei Lavrov (right) with the UN-backed Libyan prime minister, Fayez al-Sarraj. EPA/Sergei Ilnitsky
http://theconversation.com/russia-has-a-serious-stake-in-libyas-uncertain-future-79371
the reasons for Russia’s involvement in Libya have less to do with the dialogue between Libya’s governments than with Russia’s very distinctive geopolitical motives.

Libya’s political map is marked by large areas beyond government control – some are under the sway of local armed groups, while others are partially filled by violent radical Islamist groups. The so-called Islamic State (IS) maintains cells in the coastal town of Sabratha, and controls swaths of territory south-east of Tripoli.

This means that by engaging the political leadership in the coastal cities, the Kremlin can claim to be fighting IS and its affiliates (which have attacked Russian targets before). Here, Moscow is presenting itself as part of a broader international effort to fight terrorism.

Then there are the commercial interests of Russian oil and gas companies and weapons manufacturers. Russia has cited losses of US$4 billion in Libyan arms contracts since Gaddafi was toppled in 2011, and it is keen to start making money in the country again. The Russian oil company Rosneft signed a crude oil purchasing agreement with Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) in February 2017. And the fact that Haftar controls the bulk of Libya’s oil resources raises the possibility of lucrative contracts with a future national government – provided Haftar wields substantial influence.

Russia has been a vocal critic of UN efforts in Libya, its complaints mainly relate to questions of power-sharing and military command structures. Moscow criticised the UN-brokered Libyan Political Agreement of December 2015 and voiced its dissatisfaction with Martin Kobler, the head of the UN Support Mission in Libya, for favouring the Tripoli government, ignoring Haftar, and thereby stalling the reconciliation process.

But perhaps above all, Russia’s approach to Libya has to be seen as a direct reaction to the mechanisms of Gaddafi’s ouster in 2011.

A dangerous precedent

At the centre of things is United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, which was passed in March 2011 to authorise a no-fly zone over Libya. In the Security Council, the Russian government abstained, passing up the opportunity to unilaterally veto it.

The Kremlin has come to regret this. As it read the resolution, the mandate was written exclusively for the purposes of civilian protection, but was used by Western powers as a pretext to help remove Gaddafi from power. As the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, sourly observed:

“By distorting the mandate obtained from the UN Security Council to secure a no-fly zone, NATO simply interfered in the war under the flag of protecting the civilian population.”

In Russia’s view, the resolution and its aftermath set a nefarious precedent for externally enforced regime change via the back door. Russia vowed that the same thing would not happen again in Syria, and duly vetoed eight draft Security Council resolutions condemning Assad’s Syrian government.

Still, Russia’s desire to stamp its imprint on Libya’s future rather than bowing to foreign policy decisions made elsewhere doesn’t mean it’s preparing a military intervention. For all the US media’s alarm at an alleged Russian build-up in western Egypt, close to the Libyan border, Russia knows its military interventions are only useful insofar as they can be translated into political leverage.

In Syria, for example, the strengthening of Assad’s control over previously rebel-held areas, aided by Russian air sorties, “created the conditions for the start of a peace process”, as Putin noted as he ordered a retreat of Russian forces in March 2016. This peace process, to be sure, was meant to be led by Russia, as the ongoing peace talks in Kazakhstan have shown.

It seems highly unlikely that Russia will offer comparable military support for either faction in Libya, as Moscow’s diplomatic initiatives towards both Libyan governments have made clear. Any deliveries of Russian arms to either side are prohibited by a UN weapons embargo, as Russia’s ambassador to Libya has himself stressed.

If Libya’s two governments reach some kind of settlement thanks to Russia’s involvement, the Kremlin’s lost billions in contracts might return. But perhaps more importantly, Russia’s role in Libya and Syria since 2011 has made it a key actor in international security at large. So just as Libya’s political future hinges to no small extent on Russian foreign policy, Moscow has a great deal invested in that future as well.

 

[cancel2 2022]

indeed. Hiftar of Bengazi and the east is still the strongman -not the wussified UN imposed government of Tobruk..

The country needs another Qadaffi

I seem to recall saying something similar a while back but you weren't quite so receptive!

Sent from my iPhone 25 GT Turbo

 

[cancel2 2022]

Bull they destroyed it to save it, & you know it....

Yea, stability would help in several key areas, including the exploitation of refugees & the constant killings..

Is anyone suggesting dear leader go clean it up??

You're a cynical sod Bill!

Sent from my iPhone 25 GT Turbo

 

[anatta]

I seem to recall saying something similar a while back but you weren't quite so receptive!

Sent from my iPhone 25 GT Turbo

it would help if you were more specific.
But notice not even Russia is putting all it's chips on the Tobruk government..

It's clear the UN imposed government in Tripoli has no real backing outside of the Misrata Brigades and such,
and then only a a proxie army to go against ISIS.
It has no support outside it's UN mandate in Tripoli

If I were Trump -i'd be doing what Russia is doing now -but he shows no inclination
and i have serious doubts if any Libyan would trust our "soft power"-considering we bombed them into a failed state