Berlin Extends Participation In EU Mission To Enforce Libya Arms Embargo - Bundestag

BERLIN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 27th April, 2023) The German parliament on Wednesday, by a majority vote, extended the mandate for the participation of the German armed forces in the European Union Naval Force Operation IRINI in the Mediterranean aimed at maintaining the United Nations arms embargo against Libya, the Bundestag, the country's lower house, said.

"The Bundestag decided to extend the participation of the Bundeswehr (the country's armed forces)," the German parliament said in a statement following the vote.

The decision was backed by 553 lawmakers and opposed by 100 parliament members.

Up to 300 German soldiers have been participating in the operation since May 7, 2020.

In mid-March, the Council of the European Union agreed to extend the mission until March 31, 2025.

In March 2020, the EU launched Operation IRINI to contribute to the implementation of the UN arms embargo against Libya.

According to the EU, the mission is mandated to track illegal arms shipments to and from Libya, as well as monitor and gather information on illicit exports from Libya of energy sources, and share the information collected with the UN. To track illegal arms shipments across Libya's land borders and by air, the EU uses satellites and aerial surveillance.

Libya has been grappling with multiple crises after the Western military intervention of 2011 overthrew its longtime adversary, Muammar Gaddafi, and created a power vacuum that split Libya into rival factions. The UN has been struggling to fill the void by helping Libyans hold a general election, although internal divisions led it to cancel the vote set for 2021.