Italy and Egypt yesterday pressed for swifter action by the UN to find a political solution to Libya’s rapidly deteriorating security situation.
Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Paolo Gentiloni, speaking in parliament, urged the world to “quicken its pace before it is too late.”
Egypt this week launched airstrikes in Libya after the Islamic State group posted a video of the beheadings of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians there, and yesterday it called on the UN to lift an arms embargo on Libya.
Photo: Reuters
Hours before a UN Security Council emergency meeting, Gentiloni said the UN must “double its efforts” to promote political dialogue among Libyans who are divided among competing militias, Muslim factions and tribal rivalries. He said the only solution to Libya’s problems is a political one.
A meeting on Wednesday last week in Ghadames, Libya, among Libyan factions, appeared to be “a step in the right direction,” Gentiloni said.
Italy is ready to monitor any ceasefire, contribute to peacekeeping efforts, repair infrastructure and provide military training so militias can be folded into the regular army, he said.
With Italian islands only a few hundred kilometers from Libya, Italy has borne the brunt of waves of migrants who are smuggled across the Mediterranean from Libya. Officials say more Libyan chaos could swell the numbers of migrants fleeing war in Syria and other conflicts.
Meanwhile, in talks in New York ahead of the UN Security Council meeting, Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry told fellow diplomats that Libya’s internationally recognized government needed to be better armed to take on Muslim militias who have seized large parts of the country.
Shoukry is calling on the Security Council to “assume its responsibilities in regards to the deteriorating situation in Libya” and to “reconsider the restrictions imposed on the Libyan government on arms deliveries,” the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
The minister also “underlined the need to allow countries in the region... to support the Libyan government’s efforts to impose its authority and restore stability,” it said.
Shoukry, who the ministry said had met with the UN envoys of the five permanent members of the Security Council, also called for steps to be taken “to prevent armed and terrorist groups from obtaining weapons illegally.”
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft