Russian Diplomat Meets UN Envoy For Libya Ahead Of Disputed Elections

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov has met with UN special envoy for Libya Ghassan Salame to discuss political process in the North African country ahead of this December's vote.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th November, 2018) Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov has met with UN special envoy for Libya Ghassan Salame to discuss political process in the North African country ahead of this December's vote.

"They held a detailed discussion of the current situation in Libya with a focus on the need for a stable political process aimed at achieving national accord by electing a single competent state authority," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said the meeting was held on Sunday in the run-up to a Libya conference in Palermo on Monday and Tuesday where stakeholders from Libya's two rival governments - one in Tripoli, backed by the UN, and one in Tobruk - will meet to discuss ways of ending the war.

Libyans are expected to go to the polls on December 10 to elect a president and a parliament, seven years after their longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi was deposed and killed. Salame warned the UN Security Council last week that the deadline could not be met and suggested putting off the elections until next spring.