Libyan Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni - who is in Malta and who earlier today was in talks with Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and various members of the Cabinet - said that once Libya unites it will continue to fight IS.
His Malta visit comes ahead of talks for a national unity government planned for tomorrow in Morocco.
In a joint conference held this evening by Mr al-Thinni and Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, the Libyan Prime Minister said that Libya is currently fighting IS - something which is of paramount importance for Libya.
“Any sane government will fight IS and other extremist groups – they are a danger to the world,” he said when asked by this newsroom whether Libya will stand up to IS once an agreement is sought between Tripoli and the Tobruk-based government which he currently represents.
He also said that the internationally recognised government is “aspiring” to sign a peace agreement with representatives of the Tripoli government in Morocco tomorrow. He said that there are “voices” pushing not to sign the agreement but this was coming from individuals backing extremist groups mainly.
Seat of power will be based in Tripoli
Asked whether there is political consensus on the seat of power once the agreement is signed and the two sides unite, he said it is difficult to say who the Prime Minister will be.
“The person who gets most support will be made PM,” he said, "while the seat of government will be based in Tripoli", he continued.
Asked whether there is agreement on a weapon handover scheme, he said that these issues have not been discussed as yet, but it will be part of a comprehensive plan once the government is formed. The most important thing is that weapons will have to be within the army and police institutions only, in accordance to international law, he continued.
As for migration, he said that there is no objection to movement in international waters once the two sides have joined forces.
Meanwhile, Dr Muscat expressed satisfaction over the fact that this time around the outlook was positive when compared to the last time they met.
“We note in a positive manner the fact that parliament and your government is stating that it is unequivocally committed to the peace process in Libya. The only way forward for Libya is for it to become a united country.
“We note the news as recent as yesterday of tribal and town-based reconciliation efforts. We have discussed a number of issues which are of great importance to us. We also spoke about the presence of IS in Libya and the steps being taken and the outlook that the Libyan government has on the presence of this force in Libya, especially in Sirte and Derna.
“We have discussed the issue of migration and the EU’s response to the mounting crisis along with issues of bilateral interests whereby members of Libya’s delegation will be meeting with my ministers tomorrow,” Dr Muscat said.
Malta is committed to take active part in reconciliation of Libya - Muscat
Dr Muscat went on to say that while today our focus is on our efforts for Libya's reconciliation, we are preparing to assist in the education sector.
“Once Libya opens for business we are prepared to enter this market once again in the same way Libyan businesses are welcome to invest here,” Dr Muscat said.
On migration, he said that the EU is asking the legitimate government to help safeguard borders of Libya and this is Malta’s and the EU’s preferred line of action.
We came to Malta to show that we believe that it is our voice in the EU – al-Thinni
On his part, Mr al-Thinni expressed his appreciation to the Maltese people.
“We came to Malta to show that we believe that it is our voice in the European Union,” he said.
Earlier, Mr al-Tinni met with members of the Cabinet, namely Economy Minister Chris Cardona, Energy and Health Minister Konrad Mizzi, Education and Employment Minister Evarist Bartolo, Foreign Affairs Minister George Vella and Family Minister Michael Farrugia. OPM chief of staff Keith Schembri was also present for the meeting.
Video: Paul Jones, picture: James Bianchi