UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo made the remarks at the Security Council and reported on the current talks.

The official said on Monday that the talks between the representatives of the two rival legislative chambers: the House of Representatives in the east and the High Council of State, based in the western city of Tripoli, were recently held in Cairo, Egypt.

The draft of a reformed constitution to facilitate the electoral process, delayed since December 2021, was reviewed in those meetings, DiCarlo said.

In her view, the outcome of those talks marked “a step in the right direction” and next week, the leaders will meet in Geneva in an effort to reach a final agreement that leads to hold elections at the earliest possible date.

Meanwhile, the continued political divisions contribute to a tense security environment in and around Tripoli, stemming from the standoff between two rivals that claim to be the legitimate prime minister.

Libya has been plunged into a spiral of violence since the overthrow of Muammar al-Gaddafi in 2011, following a war supported by members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, among them the United States, France and the United Kingdom.

pgh/iff/oda/ifb