29 April 2015 - Earlier this week, the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) circulated a draft proposal for a political agreement in Libya. In a letter addressed to the dialogue participants, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Libya Bernardino Leon explained that the proposal builds on discussions that took place over the past three months.

The draft seeks to create and develop middle ground on the more difficult and sensitive issues and outlines a vision for the remainder of the transitional period.

The draft agreement is anchored in a number of key principles, including that of the inviolability of the democratic process and a clear separation of powers between the executive and legislative authorities. UNSMIL views this as key to the proper functioning of Government and State, and to providing the necessary political guarantees to safeguard a future government of national accord and sufficiently empower it to address the huge challenges confronting Libya.

The Mission has noted initial feedback on the draft agreement and reminds all parties that the document remains a work in progress, and should therefore be treated as such until all parties reach consensus on what they believe constitutes a viable political settlement.

Leon takes this opportunity to publicly acknowledge the efforts that the dialogue participants have invested towards making progress in the negotiations, despite the difficult circumstances and enormous pressures they have had to endure as a result of their engagement with the process. He salutes their courage and commitment to bring about a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Libya.

UNSMIL reiterates its steadfast commitment to continue working closely with all the parties to ensure a successful conclusion of the dialogue process, one that upholds the national interest of Libya and the Libyan people. To this end, Leon will be consulting with all parties over the next few days in order to agree a date for the resumption of the dialogue talks.