Gaddafi cozies up to Moscow

2011-05-16 22:35

Moscow - Russia was due on Tuesday to hold previously unannounced talks with envoys of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi amid efforts by Moscow to help mediate an end to an international campaign it has opposed.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the meetings with the Tripoli government representatives will be followed by talks with rebel envoys from Benghazi at a later date.

"We have agreed Moscow meetings with representatives of both Tripoli and Benghazi," the ITAR-TASS news agency quoted Lavrov as saying.

"The Tripoli envoys will be here tomorrow," Russia's top diplomat said.

He added that the trip by the rebel representatives had been delayed for "technical" reasons but had originally been scheduled for Wednesday.

Lavrov did not specify which officials would be coming to Moscow or whom besides himself they would meet.

Senior Libyan rebel leader Mahmud Jibril held talks in Washington on Friday and met French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris on the following day in his bid to gain international recognition for the opposition government.

Russia has refused to accept the rebels as a legitimate power in Libya and still has formal ties with the Gadafi regime.

Lavrov has fired almost daily barbs at the international military campaign against Gaddafi's forces and accused the foreign powers of trying to target the disputed Libyan leader.

Furious with rebel aid

Russia abstained for the UN Security Council vote on international military intervention in a move that helped the measure to pass.

But Moscow has argued that the current campaign breaches the UN mandate and has also criticised the leading role taken in the crisis by the International Contact Group.

It was particularly furious when the group this month agreed to provide financial assistance to the rebels from funds that partly came from Gaddafi's frozen foreign assets.

At the same time, Russia has also joined world powers in imposing its own financial and military export sanctions on Tripoli and has been openly critical of Gaddafi's crackdown on the opposition.

The Kremlin's top foreign policy adviser said shortly after the international campaign started that Moscow was keeping its ties open with Tripoli only "because we have to".

But while calling on Gaddafi to immediately cease fire and enter talks, Russia has also criticised some Western nations for agreeing to start training the rebels, saying the decision breached international law.

Read more on:    sergei lavrov  |  russia  |  libya  |  north africa
NEXT ON NEWS24X

Read News24’s Comments Policy

24.com publishes all comments posted on articles provided that they adhere to our Comments Policy. Should you wish to report a comment for editorial review, please do so by clicking the 'Report Comment' button to the right of each comment.

Comment on this story
5 comments
Add your comment
Comment 0 characters remaining
 

Inside News24

 
 

Hitchhiking cat headed home

A well-travelled cat named “Mata Hairi” will soon be reunited with her owner after travelling thousands of miles with a hitchhiker.

 
 

More pet-centric news...

Huge snake opens door
Lifestyles of the pawed and pampered
Dolphin suffers for holiday snaps
Man saves cat from boa constrictor
 
Traffic
Lottery
 
  • Thursday Citrusdal - 16:22 PM
    Road name: N7
    ROADWORKS - stop / go controls in operation between Citrusdal and Clanwilliam (until 2014)
  • Monday Ventersburg - 05:24 AM
    Road name: N1
    ROADWORKS - construction works are underway with a deviation in operation just north of the town centre
 
More traffic reports...
 

Property [change area]

Travel - Look, Book, Go!

Aquarius Suites - Blouberg Strand, Cape Town

Spend 2 nights for R2 710 per person sharing at Aquarius Suites - Blouberg. The special includes accommodation, return flights, airport taxes, car rental and local travel insurance.

Book now!

Kalahari.com - shop online today

Buy 2 or more Deon Meyer titles & get 30% off

Get 30% off Deon Meyer’s greatest reads when you buy 2 or more of his books from this catalogue. Shop now!

3 CDs for R99

Sing along to the with great music legends, get 3 CDs for R99. Shop now!

The latest DVDs on pre-order!

Get the hottest DVD titles the moment they release and experience the best movie entertainment in the comfort of your own home. Shop now!

MotoGP 13 – coming 21 June

Get the official video game of one of the most famous brands in sports, get on the ride to be the world champion. Available for PC, PS, Xbox & PS VITA. Pre-order now!

gobii 7” colour LCD eReader + R160 eBook voucher

Read eBooks, watch videos and listen to music with this great eReader, now only R799. Buy now.

OLX Free Classifieds [change area]

Blackberry z10 (1 day old)

For Sale, Cell Phones - Accessories in South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg. Date May 13

Urgent Sale

Vehicles, Motorcycles - Scooters in South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg. Date May 13

Aupairs

Jobs, Au pairs & nannies in South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg. Date May 12

BlackBerry Curve 8520

Wi-Fi enabled With the BlackBerry Curve 8520 connect to your home...

From R1250.00

I'm shopping for:

Horoscopes
Aquarius
Aquarius

You could feel touchy about your reputation at work today. If someone has let something slip that you found offensive, first...read more

There are new stories on the homepage. Click here to see them.
 
English
Afrikaans
isiZulu

Hello 

Create Profile

Creating your profile will enable you to submit photos and stories to get published on News24.


Please provide a username for your profile page:

This username must be unique, cannot be edited and will be used in the URL to your profile page across the entire 24.com network.

Settings

Location Settings

News24 allows you to edit the display of certain components based on a location. If you wish to personalise the page based on your preferences, please select a location for each component and click "Submit" in order for the changes to take affect.








Facebook Sign-In

Hi News addict,

Join the News24 Community to be involved in breaking the news.

Log in with Facebook to comment and personalise news, weather and listings.