(Bloomberg) -- Libya’s prime minister said it would be unacceptable for Russia to move weapons from Syria to the divided OPEC member, where rival powers in the east have previously drawn on Kremlin support.
No one would accept “a foreign force that wants to impose its hegemony and authority on the nation and its people,” premier Abdul Hamid Dbeibah said Thursday at a televised event when asked about reports of Russian transfers. Russia has two military bases in western Syria whose future is unclear after the overthrow of ally President Bashar Al-Assad this month.
While agreements can be reached between nations for training or education, for example, the notion of foreign troops “entering the country forcefully” is totally rejected, Dbeibah said. “With regard to whoever enters this nation without a license, we will be against them and will fight them.”
Dbeibah’s internationally recognized government in western Libya is challenged by a rival parliament in the east, with regular disagreements threatening to plunge the country back into civil war.
Russia, which came to Assad’s rescue when he was close to being ousted in 2015, has a naval port in Tartus and an air base at Khmeimim. The Syria facilities are seen as key for the Kremlin to maintain an air bridge and manage its military, political and economic influence in parts of Africa.
Eastern Libya, where Russia helped military commander Khalifa Haftar in a failed 2019-2020 campaign to seize Tripoli, has been suggested by some analysts as an alternative staging point.
Italian Concern
Speaking to La Repubblica newspaper this week, Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said Moscow was transferring resources from Tartus to Libya.
“This is not good,” he told the Italian publication. “Russian ships and submarines in the Mediterranean are always a cause for concern, especially if they are just a stone’s throw away from us instead of a thousand kilometers away.” The size of the shipments wasn’t clear.
Bloomberg reported last week that Moscow was in talks with Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, the Islamist group now controlling most of Syria, to retain its bases there. Some European nations are considering making the expulsion of Russia’s military a precondition for lifting restrictions against HTS, according to people familiar with the matter.
On the other hand, Western diplomats said Russia may use its seat on the United Nations Security Council to push for its continued presence in Syria, as HTS is under UN sanctions. The long-term fate of the bases remains very fluid, they said, asking not to be identified discussing sensitive matters.
--With assistance from Sherif Tarek.
(Updates with deliberations on Russia bases in final paragraph.)
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