Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Political Affairs in Libya Stephanie Williams wear a face mask to attend the talks between the rival factions in Libya conflict at the UN offices in Geneva, Switzerland October 20, 2020 Fabrice Coffrini Pool via REUTERS File Photo
UN NATIONS, December 6, Reuters - U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed a U.S. diplomat Stephanie Williams to lead mediation efforts in Libya after his special envoy quit just weeks ahead of planned elections in the country.
U.N. special envoy on Libya, Jan Kubis, is due to step down on Friday. Guterres had suggested veteran British diplomat Nicholas Kay as a replacement, but Russia said it would not support Kay, according to diplomats. The 15-member U.N. Security Council must approve a new appointment by consensus.
Guterres named Williams his special adviser, which does not require council approval. Williams was the acting special envoy on Libya after Ghassan Salame quit in March 2020 because of stress and before Kubis was approved in January 2021.
Kubis, who has been based in Geneva, said last month there was a need for the head envoy to be based in Libya's capital Tripoli and he will lead good offices and mediation efforts with Libyan regional and international stakeholders to support the holding of presidential and parliamentary elections in Libya.
Libya fell into chaos after the overthrow of longtime autocrat Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 by NATO. In October last year, the two major sides in Libya's civil war agreed a ceasefire between the internationally recognized Government of National Accord and Khalifa Haftar's eastern-based Libyan National Army.
A U.N. political forum last year demanded parliamentary and presidential elections take place on December 24 as part of a plan to end the war. The peace process may be hampered by disputes over the planned vote.
A first-round presidential election is set to take place on December 24 and the parliamentary election has been delayed to January or February. Rules for the elections have not yet been agreed.