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UN

Libyans agree at UN on unity government plan

Libya's warring factions have agreed on a roadmap to form a unity government after two days of UN-brokered talks in Geneva, touted as the last chance to avert total anarchy.

The North African nation has been wracked by conflict since the overthrow of dictator Moamar Kadhafi in a 2011 uprising, with rival governments and powerful militias battling for control of key cities and the country's vast oil riches.
   
UN special envoy to Syria, Bernardino Leon, had warned at the start of the talks that they were a last-ditch effort to prevent all-out chaos.
   
"The participants agreed after extensive deliberation on an agenda that includes reaching a political agreement to form a consensual national unity government and the necessary security arrangements to end the fighting," a UN statement said.
   
It said the talks "were constructive and… reflected the participants' sincere commitment to reach common ground."
   
The participants called on all the players to cease hostilities to create a conducive environment for the dialogue, and "expressed their unequivocal commitment to a united and democratic Libya governed by the rule of law and respect for human rights."
   
They agreed to work towards the release of abducted people, providing and allowing humanitarian aid to reach affected regions, opening airports and securing land and maritime navigation.
   
The delegates will return to Geneva for a fresh round of talks next week after consultations.
   
As news of the agreement came, the UN refugee agency said an upsurge in fighting since the start of this year across several towns in the east, including the second city of Benghazi, had sparked more displacements.
   
"In Benghazi alone, the local council is reporting that around 90,000 people are unable to return home," it said, adding that number of people displaced nationwide was approximately 400,000.

'Peaceful transfer of power' 

Libya's internationally recognised government decamped last summer to the eastern city of Tobruk after an Islamist-backed militia alliance seized the capital Tripoli and set up its own administration.
   
The alliance known as Fajr Libya (Libya Dawn) also holds the third city, Misrata.

It launched a bloody offensive in December to seize control of key oil terminals but was repelled by the army.
   
The broad agreement cobbled in Geneva also saw the factions pledge to work towards ensuring the free movement of people across the divided nation.
   
They also vowed to respect the legitimacy of state institutions, work towards the peaceful transfer of power and reject violence and terrorism.
   
The agreement came after months of UN efforts to get the opposing sides back to the negotiating table after a single round of talks in September.
   
A major concern in Libya is the proliferation of Islamist militias in key areas such as Benghazi.
   
Those militias are led by the Ansar al-Sharia group, blacklisted by the United Nations for its links to Al-Qaeda.
   
The Islamic State group that has seized large areas in Iraq and Syria is also thought to have gained a foothold in eastern Libya.
   
Leon had also underscored the threat of Libya becoming a hotbed of Islamist insurgency, saying it menaced North Africa, the Middle East, the Sahel and Europe, which lies on Libya's doorstep.
   
Jihadists are reported to have set up camps in Libya, including in the remote southern desert, to train militants to fight in Mali, Iraq or Syria.
   
The head of Libya's recognized government has pleaded for more international help in combating militias by lifting an arms embargo imposed by the UN Security Council at the start of the anti-Kadhafi uprising in 2011.
   
"In Libya, the government and armed forces are battling these groups alone, without any support from the international community," Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thani told AFP in an interview just before the Geneva talks.

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UN

‘The war must end now’: UN Sec-Gen meets Swedish PM in Stockholm

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres met Sweden's Prime Minister in Stockholm on Wednesday, ahead of the conference marking the 50th anniversary of the city's historic environment summit .

'The war must end now': UN Sec-Gen meets Swedish PM in Stockholm

After a bilateral meeting with Magdalena Andersson on the security situation in Europe, Guterres warned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could lead to a global food crisis that would hurt some of the world’s most vulnerable people. 

“It is causing immense suffering, destruction and devastation of the country. But it also inflames a three-dimensional global crisis in food, energy and finance that is pummelling the most vulnerable people, countries and economies,” the Portuguese diplomat told a joint press conference with Andersson. 

He stressed the need for “quick and decisive action to ensure a steady flow of food and energy,” including “lifting export restrictions, allocating surpluses and reserves to vulnerable populations and addressing food price increases to calm market volatility.”

Between the two, Russia and Ukraine produce around 30 percent of the global wheat supply.

Guterres was in Stockholm to take part in the Stockholm 50+ conference, which celebrates the 50th anniversary of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment. 

The conference, which was held on the suggestion of the Swedish government in 1972 was the first UN meeting to discuss human impacts on the global environment, and led to the establishment of the UN Environment Program (UNEP). 

At the joint press conference, Andersson said that discussions continued between Sweden and Turkey over the country’s continuing opposition to Sweden’s application to join the Nato security alliance. 

“We have held discussions with Turkey and I’m looking forward to continuing the constructive meetings with Turkey in the near future,” she said, while refusing to go into detail on Turkey’s demands. 

“We are going to take the demands which have been made of Sweden directly with them, and the same goes for any misunderstandings which have arisen,” she said. 

At the press conference, Guterres condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine as “a violation of its territorial integrity and a violation of the UN Charter”.

“The war must end now,” he said. 

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