![Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar sits during talks with Greek Foreign Minister in Athens, on January 17, 2020 [ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images]](https://i2.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GettyImages-1194104436.jpg?resize=1200%2C800&quality=85&strip=all&ssl=1)
Last Monday, the French government hosted Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar on a brief, unannounced, visit to Paris. Accompanied by his top political advisor, my ex-academic colleague turned politician Fadel Ed-Deep, he met President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace. After the meeting an Élysée official said that, “Marshal Haftar assured [us] that he was committed to signing the ceasefire but this commitment would cease if the militias do not respect it.” The “militias” mentioned are the coalition that is supporting the Government of National Accord (GNA), currently recognised by France as the only legitimate government in Libya.
This is the first time that France, a veto-holding member of the UN Security Council, has used the term militias in such a context and at such a high level. The GNA has accused Macron’s government of supporting Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA) and giving him the green light to launch his attack on Tripoli last April. LNA troops have since been laying siege to the Libyan capital, although their advance has all but stalled. Over the past five days, Tripoli has been relatively quiet, with no gunfire or artillery explosions being heard.
Does Haftar’s visit and the tone adopted by the French indicate a new position that openly supports him despite the previous commitments to a peaceful solution to the Libyan conflict? The Élysée did not mention any follow-up to his visit, or say if diplomats will be conveying the message to the GNA about his ceasefire offer.
Diplomatically, this could mean that France is seeking to portray him as an ally and will probably come down heavier on the GNA in Tripoli. Media sources close to Haftar have talked about another proposal that would see the GNA reshuffled, whereby the next government will be smaller and more representative of the country. Whether this is a serious offer and under what terms Haftar made the proposal remains unclear.
The Libyan commander went from Paris to Berlin where he met German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Her spokesman said that she reiterated the German position that the only solution to the Libyan conflict is political and to achieve that there must be a ceasefire first. The response from Haftar was not mentioned.
