US Disappointed With Dialogue With Russia On Africa - State Department

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd December, 2019) The United States talks to Russia about its growing presence in Africa, including Libya, but the dialogue has been unproductive so far, US Under Secretary of State David Hale told a Senate panel on Tuesday.

"It's a topic of our conversations with the Russian officials. I don't think that that dialogue is producing, yielding results that are necessary for our national security," Hale said in his testimony before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

He was grilled on the matter by senator John Isakson who blamed Russia for alleged interference in elections in various African countries and dispatching "hundreds" of mercenaries to war-torn Libya.

Isakson said that he had recently introduced bipartisan Libya Stabilization Act that would include sanctions against "those involved in a Russian intervention" in the country.

Asked what the State Department was doing to limit Russia's influence in Libya and other African countries, Hale said that there were efforts underway to maintain good US relationships with continent, increase assistance and promote American business endeavors there. He also took credit for "throwing a spotlight" on Russia's alleged presence in Libya.