Libya: the US confirms training services for security forces, but outside the country
The US company Amentum, a service contractor in support of the programs of the Pentagon and the US State Department, is currently engaged in "classroom training activities for Libyan law enforcement personnel, which take place outside the country". A spokesperson for the State Department told "Agenzia Nova", explaining that these activities take place within the framework of a "global program" coordinated by the Office for Diplomatic Security. The clarification came after recent press rumors on the alleged presence of Amentum in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, to train a series of militias active in the west of the country and integrate them into the forces of the Government of National Unity (Gun) of Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dabaiba, the executive body recognized by the international community. The spokesperson for the US State Department denied the reconstruction according to which Amentum is training militias inside the Libyan capital, stating that "the federal government is not providing training to armed groups".
The provision of services to Libya on behalf of the State Department, however, represents a novelty for Amentum, which so far has only officially declared contracts in Benin and Somalia, for the supply of military and construction services to the Armed Forces in the framework of the Africa Peacekeeping Program (Africap). The initiative, we read on the Amentum website, was launched by the US State Department to "strengthen the capacities of African countries and regional organizations, to promote stability and prevent, manage and resolve conflicts". Speaking to "Nova", the department spokesperson did not specify whether the provision of services to Libya takes place within the framework of the same program, limiting himself to saying in general that the US Armed Forces have "a small number of exchanges and interactions with Libyan forces , coming from the West and also from the East of the country: these are aimed above all at supporting the path towards the unification of Libya's security institutions, keeping the lines of communication open".
“Most” of these interactions, he continued, happens outside Libya. “Delegations of forces from the East and West take part in security seminars, symposiums and conferences, also participating in multilateral regional military exercises.” The spokesperson also specified that these activities take place "in full compliance with the commitments undertaken by the United States within the framework of the United Nations, especially with regard to the sanctions measures imposed by the UN Security Council with resolution 1970 of 2011". The Washington authorities, he underlined, plan "regular reviews of our activities, to ensure compliance with all obligations". Resolution 1970, passed unanimously by the United Nations Security Council in 2011, imposed an arms embargo on Libya to condemn the repression of citizens by Muammar Gaddafi's regime.
The latest elections in Libya took place in 2014 and led to the outbreak of a civil war, which ended with the ceasefire of November 2020, which is still in force. Today's Libya is administered by two rival political-military coalitions: on the one hand the Government of National Unity based in Tripoli of Prime Minister Dabaiba, recognized at an international level; on the other, the so-called National Stability Government led by Osama Hammad, prime minister designated by the House of Representatives and supported by General Haftar, commander of the Libyan National Army (NLA) headquartered in Benghazi. To break the political stalemate, the United Nations envoy, Abdoulaye Bathily, is carrying out difficult political consultations to install a new unity government and to organize presidential and parliamentary elections. The United Nations Security Council will meet on April 16 to discuss the latest developments in Libya.