U.S., France, Italy, UK welcome Libya's resumed oil work

WASHINGTON, July 12 (KUNA) -- The governments of the U.S., France, Italy and the United Kingdom welcomed Thursday the announcement that Libya's National Oil Corporation is resuming its "vital work on behalf of all Libyans." In a joint statement, the Governments of the U.S., France, Italy and the UK commended "the legitimate National Oil Corporation as it repairs infrastructure, honors its contractual obligations, and, having lifted the state of emergency provisions in eastern Libya, restores oil exports and production critical to Libya's prosperity." They also voiced appreciation over the LNA's contributions "to restore stability in Libya's oil sector, which is critical to Libya's national interest." They reiterated that Libya's oil facilities, production and revenues "belong to the Libyan people," and that the National Oil Corporation "must be allowed to work on behalf of all Libyans and that Libya's oil resources must remain under the exclusive control of the legitimate National Oil Corporation and the sole oversight of the Government of National Accord (GNA)." "Now is the time for all Libyan players to move forward with a Libyan-owned discussion about how to improve fiscal transparency, strengthen economic institutions, and ensure just distribution of the country's resources, within the framework of the Plan of Action formulated by UN Special Representative Ghassan Salameh and on the basis of the Libyan Political Agreement, endorsed by the UN Security Council through resolution 2259 (2015)," they stressed.
Furthermore, they called on Libya's leaders "to seize this important opportunity, within the framework of the Libyan Political Agreement, to resolve differences over the Central Bank of Libya, enhance dialogue on the distribution of resources through the national budget, and work toward the unification of the Central Bank of Libya and the dissolution of parallel institutions, as agreed in the May 29 Political Declaration in Paris." They also noted that they "stand in solidarity with Libya's leaders as they work toward an inclusive Libyan owned political process that will lead to credible, peaceful and well-prepared national elections as soon as possible." "The Governments of France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States pledge to support Libyan leaders in pursuing these measures and will use all tools are our disposal to hold accountable those who undermine Libya's peace, security, and stability," the joint statement remarked. (end) si.mt