CIA chief makes rare visit to Libya
During the diplomatic meeting between Libya's government and the US delegation, both parties discussed the economic and political future of the North African nation.
This is the first visit by a high-ranking US official to Libya since President Joe Biden claimed office.
US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) chief William Burns made a rare trip to Libya, meeting Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah in Tripoli, the Libyan government has said.
Libya's Government of National Unity announced the visit on its Facebook page on Thursday, posting a picture of Burns and Dbeibah together.
"During the meeting, Burns emphasized the need to develop economic and security cooperation between the two countries, citing the stability and growth that Libya has seen in recent times," the statement said.
The CIA, which does not regularly announce such visits, declined to comment.
"The Prime Minister [Dbeibah] affirmed that the goal is to stabilise our country and support it internationally to reach the elections," it added.
Libya has had little peace since the uprising in 2011, and the country split in 2014 between warring eastern and western factions, culminating in Haftar launching a doomed assault on Tripoli in 2019.
Government of National Unity was formed through a UN-backed process in 2021 as part of a peace plan, but his administration is challenged by the factions in the east.
The United States has previously said it is worried about the role played by Russia in Libya's conflict and fears continued instability in the OPEC member could impact the global energy supply.
READ MORE: UN calls on Libyan leaders to end transitional period
The meeting was attended by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Najla Mangoush, the Chief of the Intelligence Agency Hussein Al Ayeb, the Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs and Prime Minister Adel Juma.
Libya's civil war
France, Russia and some Gulf nations backed warlord Haftar's fighters during the war in 2019-2020, with the Russian private military contractor Wagner deploying up to 1,200 troops in Libya, according to a 2020 report by UN experts.
Washington is also seeking more Libyan suspects in the 1988 bombing of a Pan-Am airliner over Lockerbie in Scotland after last month's transfer from Libya to the United States of a former Libyan intelligence officer accused of making the bomb that took down the plane.
READ MORE: ICC seeks arrest warrants for war crimes in Libya, unearths new evidence
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