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German government unsure if Haftar and al-Sarraj will attend Berlin conference

The international conference on Libya will take place on January 19 in Berlin

Commander of the Libyan National Army Khalifa Haftar Sergei Savostyanov/TASS

Commander of the Libyan National Army Khalifa Haftar

© Sergei Savostyanov/TASS

BERLIN, January 15. /TASS/. Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar and head of the Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez al-Sarraj have been invited to attend the Berlin conference on Libya set to take place on January 19, Deputy German Government Spokesperson Ulrike Demmer said during a briefing on Wednesday.

"Both have been invited," she said. "I cannot say anything for sure regarding their participation."

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Haftar to take part in Berlin conference on Libya — media

The conference is "the beginning of the negotiating process under the auspices of the UN," Demmer added. She noted that it is important to create conditions for Libya to be able to take part in the regulation process on its territory.

The international conference on Libya will take place on January 19 in Berlin. The German government’s press service informed on Tuesday that Russia, the US, China, the UK, Italy, France, Turkey, Egypt, Algeria, the United Arab Emirates, the Republic of the Congo, along with representatives of the UN, the EU, the African Union and the Arab League are set to take part in the conference.

During a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on January 11, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that in order to make the conference fruitful, its participants must be genuinely interested in aiding Libyan regulation, pre-approving all its decisions with the Libyan parties.

Libya regulation process

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Fighting resumes in Tripoli as Haftar leaves Moscow without signing ceasefire deal — TV

On January 12 at midnight, a ceasefire proposed by Russian and Turkish Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan entered into force in Libya as part of a larger initiative to achieve peace in the country. The ceasefire’s objective is to stop hostilities between the Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar and Fayez al-Sarraj’s Government of National Accord (GNA) sitting in Tripoli. On Monday, representatives of the parties to the conflict arrived in Moscow for talks, after which GNA envoys signed a ceasefire agreement.

Haftar took a pause to study the agreement. However, later he left Moscow without putting his signature under the document, Arab media outlets reported. In the early hours of January 14, armed clashes re-erupted in south Tripoli — the target of a decisive offensive declared by Haftar in December. The LNA issued a statement declaring "readiness and determination to win."

On Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry informed that Haftar reacted positively to the final draft, however, he "took two days to hash over the document with leaders of tribes supporting the LNA." The ministry lauded the "principled agreement given by the sides to extend a ceasefire indefinitely" as a main achievement of the talks because it establishes "favorable conditions" to convene a conference on Libya in Berlin.

However, Libyan Parliament Speaker Saleh Issa announced late on Tuesday that the ceasefire had collapsed and the fighting in Tripoli resumed.

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Israeli troops continue raids in West Bank — TV

According to Al Jazeera, Israeli security forces have killed at least five people over the past 24 hours

West wants to make Transnistria hotbed of tension — Lavrov

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Russian military base may appear in CAR’s eastern region — President Touadera

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Russia knows French military instructors working in Ukraine — Lavrov

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US 'not forgetting' to help itself with aid to Ukraine — Kremlin

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Russia delivers 34 strikes on Ukrainian military infrastructure over week — top brass

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Global economy’s condition improving — Russian Deputy PM

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Izvestia correspondent Semyon Eremin killed in special operation zone

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Number of flooded residential buildings in Russia drops to 16,200

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No foreign state attacks Iran — TV

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Ukrainian drone damages energy infrastructure in Russia’s Kaluga Region

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FACTBOX: Collective Security Treaty Organization

The Collective Security Treaty came into force on April 20, 1994 to herald the emergence what would eventually become the Collective Security Treaty Organization. The six member-countries are Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan

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French president says creating Israeli-type air defense network for Ukraine impossible

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Russian defense chief checks implementation of orders to develop drones

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