Malta has told Libya at this stage there was no room for mediation and that the wishes of the people had to be respected, the Prime Minister said last night.
Speaking following a 40-minute private meeting with the president of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso in Brussels last night, Lawrence Gonzi revealed that during the past days both Libyan Prime Minister Mahmudi Bagdadi and Muammar Gaddafi’s emissary Mohammed Taher Siyala, who was in Malta on Wednesday, were in constant contact with him and asked for help over the current situation. However, Malta refused.
“We told the Libyans straight and plain that, at this stage, there is no mediation to do. The Libyan authorities have to listen to the wishes of its people,” Dr Gonzi told the Libyans.
He said that Malta has already taken a bold decision on the situation and thought that the end of the Gaddafi regime was inevitable.
“I emphasised with the Libyan representative that the violence has to stop immediately,” Dr Gonzi said. Asked on the pending release of three Dutch soldiers seized by Libya who Saif al-Islam Gaddafi said last night “will be given to the Maltese and the Greeks”, Dr Gonzi remained tight-lipped, saying that Malta’s interest was that “these three soldiers leave Libya safe and sound”.
During the meeting with Mr Barroso, Dr Gonzi spoke about the latest developments on the humanitarian aspect of the Libyan uprising and said that the EU should help Malta and other southern Mediterranean member states in case of a major influx of refugees and asylum seekers.
The development comes as the situation on the ground in Libya continued to unravel. The oil port of Ras Lanuf, which had been previously held by rebels, yesterday went back into Col Gaddafi’s hands after intense fighting through which the regime continued to force rebels eastwards. On Wednesday, rebels lost Zawiyah, west of Tripoli.
“We are moving now,” the dictator’s son Saif al-Islam told reporters.
In fact, US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said that a Gaddafi victory or a stalemate was likely, given the resources at his disposal.
“We believe that Gaddafi is in this for the long haul,” the top US official told the Senate.
“The Libyan air defence structure on the ground, radars and surface-to-air missiles, is quite substantial. In fact, it’s the second largest in the Mideast, after Egypt,” he said.
However, western powers continued to step attention to the crisis with Nato launching a round-the clock surveillance over Libya to track Col Gaddafi’s air force’s movements in battling the opposition, it was announced yesterday.
At least three airborne warning and control system (Awacs) planes – modified Boeing 707s – started 24-hour surveillance as of yesterday at 6.30 a.m.
“It’s not a precursor to a no-fly zone,” a Nato official told AFP.