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BRUSSELS — Libya has discarded Italy’s candidate to lead the EU’s mission there and is expected to choose a diplomat from France.
In a highly unusual move, interim Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh’s government in Tripoli snubbed the Italian candidate for the post, Nicola Orlando, and is expected to give its blessing to his French stand-in Patrick Simonnet, according to two EU diplomats who were granted anonymity to discuss internal personnel matters.
This comes as a blow to Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni who has pledged more engagement with North African countries as a central plank of her foreign policy agenda.
The development, first revealed by Italian daily Il Foglio, comes amid a long-running resource rivalry between Italy and France for influence in Libya. As a major oil provider and key departure point for migrants making their way to Europe, the former Italian colony has strategic importance for the EU. The bloc’s current envoy to Tripoli José Sabadell ends his term on Friday, but the Libyan authorities did not yet approve his successor.
The Libyan government rejected Orlando in July after the EU’s diplomatic arm, the European External Action Service (EEAS), proposed him for the job in April. Diplomats indicate that the Italian official — who had already served as Rome’s deputy head of mission to Tripoli and special representative to Libya — was deemed unfit due to baggage from his vast experience in the North African country.
“He was seen too much as an insider by the Libyans,” said one of the two EU diplomats, pointing out that as Italy’s special representative, Orlando engaged extensively with the leader of Libyan National Army Khalifa Haftar, who is strong in the east of the country and seen as a rival to the current head of government.
After a long period of political chaos in Libya, a UN-backed body selected Dbeibah as interim prime minister in February 2021 to lead the country to national elections, which have yet to take place.
In contrast, the French candidate Simmonet has no previous experience in Libya, though he did recently serve as the EU’s envoy to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman.
“We can confirm that Ambassador José Sabadell finishes his assignment to Libya today as foreseen, at the end of his regular tour of duty,” EEAS spokesperson Nabila Massrali wrote in a statement. The appointments of its ambassadors will be made official when all procedures are completed, she added.
The second EU diplomat noted that the Italian government was disappointed by Libya’s snub, although it did not react officially.
