Germany is the newcomer to the efforts to find a solution to Libyan political stalemate as it has announced that it will be holding an international conference on Libya. If Germany acted well, it could be the long-awaited neutral party that can resolve the crisis and pave the way for stability.
The decision by Chancellor Angela Merkel came after she warned that Libya could slid into a Syria-like chaos in the Group of Seven Summit in France.
The entry of Germany is seen by observers as a positive sign that can create a change of stances that have been adopted over the last years by the different international conferences.
Over the last years, Germany has been playing the role of a “watcher” for the developments in Libya, assisting Libya with strengthening civil societies, humanitarian work and resolving illegal immigration issues, yet the fact that Germany chaired the Security Council when Tripoli fighting broke out made it exert more efforts to solve the conflict.
Germany is different from Italy and France in its efforts this time. While the two countries are seen pushing for their interests in Libya as they have oil companies “Italy’s Eni and France’s Total”, Germany would be exempt from this reckoning as its oil giant Wintershall announced departing Libya.
This upcoming international conference in Berlin would be the biggest effort put by Germany since 2014. It is required to have the right agenda for the stakeholders on the table and to contain the rivalry of France and Italy in Libya in order to come up with a balanced result.
