{"id":431654,"date":"2011-05-28T05:56:10","date_gmt":"2011-05-28T05:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/05\/28\/russia-offers-to-mediate-gaddafi%e2%80%99s-exit\/"},"modified":"2011-05-28T05:56:10","modified_gmt":"2011-05-28T05:56:10","slug":"russia-offers-to-mediate-gaddafis-exit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/05\/28\/russia-offers-to-mediate-gaddafis-exit\/","title":{"rendered":"Russia offers to mediate Gaddafi\u2019s exit"},"content":{"rendered":"
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You Are Here: Home<\/a> \u00bb Africa\/International<\/a> \u00bb Russia offers to mediate Gaddafi\u2019s exit<\/p>\n

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Page last updated at Saturday, May 28, 2011 5:05 AM \/\/ <\/span><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Muamar Gaddafi<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Russia abandoned one-time ally Moammar Gadhafi and offered Friday to mediate a deal for the Libyan leader to leave the country he has ruled for more than 40 years.<\/p>\n

The striking proposal by a leading critic of the NATO bombing campaign reflects growing international frustration with the Libyan crisis and a desire by the Kremlin for influence in the rapidly changing Arab landscape.<\/p>\n

With Gadhafi increasingly isolated and NATO jets intensifying their attacks, Russia may also be eyeing Libya\u2019s oil and gas and preparing for the prospect that the lucrative Libyan market will fall into full rebel control.<\/p>\n

Early on Saturday, two NATO air strikes shook the Libyan capital, Tripoli. It was not immediately clear what was targeted.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe should leave,\u201d Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said of Gadhafi. \u201cI proposed our mediation services to my partners. Everyone thinks that would be useful.\u201d<\/p>\n

The proposal thrust Medvedev into the spotlight at a summit in France of Group of Eight rich nations. Talk of this year\u2019s Arab world uprisings has dominated the summit.<\/p>\n

Analysts question whether Russia still has any leverage over Gadhafi, and the leaders of France, Britain and Germany said there\u2019s no point in negotiating directly with the Libyan leader himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Gadhafi makes this decision, which will be beneficial for the country and the people of Libya, then it will be possible to discuss the form of his departure, what country may accept him and on what terms, and what he may keep and what he must lose,\u201d Medvedev told reporters.<\/p>\n

Medvedev said he is sending envoy Mikhail Margelov to the rebel stronghold of Benghazi immediately to start negotiating, and that talks with the Libyan government could take place later. Margelov said earlier Friday that it\u2019s necessary to negotiate with all \u201creasonable\u201d representatives of the government, including Gadhafi\u2019s sons.<\/p>\n

In response, Libya\u2019s deputy foreign minister, Khaled Kaim, said: \u201cRussia is one of the traditional friends of Libya. \u2026 We don\u2019t think that Russia will sway its position to side with NATO.\u201d<\/p>\n

He would not say whether Gadhafi had been informed of Medvedev\u2019s proposal, but told reporters in Tripoli that the Libyan leader was constantly watching the news.<\/p>\n

South African President Jacob Zuma is also using his party\u2019s ties to Gadhafi to work out a peaceful outcome, heading to Libya on behalf of the African Union.<\/p>\n

In Washington, U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner called Russian, South African and U.N. mediation efforts with Gadhafi \u201cconstructive,\u201d but said they needed to make clear that the Libyan leader must leave power.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if it\u2019s up to the international community, given what Gadhafi has done against his own people, to prepare him any kind of easy exit or some kind of golden parachute to leave Libya,\u201d Toner told reporters.<\/p>\n

Asked what value the mediation might then hold, Toner said the efforts could be useful \u201cto make him or his regime see clearly the writing on the wall.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no way out,\u201d Toner added. \u201cHe\u2019s no longer the legitimate leader in the eyes of the international community, in the eyes of his own people. The sooner he accepts that and moves on, the better.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s unclear what exactly Gadhafi \u2014 known as the Leader of the Revolution or Brother Leader in Libya \u2014 could step down from. He has no constitutional executive position, but wields power by force of his personality and presence, making it difficult to guarantee that he has given up power as long as he and his sons remain in the country.<\/p>\n

The opposition wants Gadhafi exiled. Medvedev said he wouldn\u2019t offer Gadhafi refuge in Russia but said with a grin, \u201csuch countries could be found\u201d that would be willing to take him in.<\/p>\n

Russian officials have been critical of Gadhafi but also say NATO is using excessive force. Russia recently held talks with representatives of both Gadhafi\u2019s government and the rebels.<\/p>\n

Russia often straddles the divide between the Western nations with which it shares a table in the G-8, and the Arab nations that Moscow nurtured during the Soviet era.<\/p>\n

Moscow offered to negotiate with Saddam Hussein in Iraq in the 1990s, and is a member of the so-called Quartet negotiating for Mideast peace, alongside the United States, European Union and United Nations.<\/p>\n

Over the past decade, the Kremlin sought to revive its influence in the Middle East and saw Gadhafi as one of its partners in the region. Libya struck multibillion dollar deals to procure Russian-made weapons, and Russia\u2019s gas monopoly Gazprom has big investments in Libya that have been threatened by Gadhafi\u2019s attacks on rebel forces.<\/p>\n

Medvedev discussed the mediation offer with President Barack Obama at talks on the sidelines of the G-8.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Russians of course have long-standing relationships in Libya that frankly we don\u2019t have,\u201d U.S. deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes said Friday. \u201cWe are going to be in close touch with the Russians as they pursue their conversations with the Libyans.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Libyan rebel spokesman, Abdel-Hafidh Ghoga, said Russia\u2019s offer should have come sooner. \u201cIt\u2019s too late, and it\u2019s not a big deal,\u201d Ghoga, the vice chairman of the opposition National Transitional Council, told a rally in the eastern city of Benghazi.<\/p>\n

But the timing may be propitious.<\/p>\n

Libya\u2019s rebels have consolidated their position, and NATO pounded Tripoli with its heaviest strikes yet this week. Fuel and food shortages in the capital are starting to take a toll.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe world does not see (Gadhafi) as the Libyan leader, and this is the position of not only the G-8 but also of all the African states that attended today\u2019s summit,\u201d Medvedev said.<\/p>\n

A Moscow-based Middle East expert expressed doubt that Gadhafi will agree to step down after Benghazi-based opposition leaders rejected a cease-fire agreement proposed by the African Union in late March.<\/p>\n

Gadhafi \u201cwill fight to the end with unpredictable consequences for everyone involved,\u201d Yevgeny Satanovsky, head of the Moscow-based Middle East Institute, told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n

On Friday, rebel fighters clashed with government forces to the south and west of the insurgent-held city of Misrata. Dr. Mustafa Omar of Hikma hospital said five rebels were killed and 26 wounded. It was unclear if any government soldiers were killed.<\/p>\n

While rebel fighters have pushed Gadhafi\u2019s troops to Misrata\u2019s outskirts, the city, Libya\u2019s third largest, has been under siege for months, receiving food and medical supplies only by sea.<\/p>\n

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, hosting the G-8 summit, said Friday there is \u201cgreat unanimity\u201d about an \u201cintensification of the military intervention\u201d to protect civilians.<\/p>\n

He did not say how, but France and Britain said this week they are ready to deploy attack helicopters in the campaign.<\/p>\n

British Prime Minister David Cameron told reporters in Deauville that the deployment of helicopters was \u201cpart of the process of turning up the pressure\u201d on Gadhafi. He said the campaign is entering a \u201cnew phase.\u201d<\/p>\n

So far, the NATO campaign has relied largely on strike jets dropping munitions from an altitude of about 15,000 feet (4,600 meters). The helicopters, flying much lower and slower, could more accurately identify targets in densely populated areas while risking fewer civilian lives. But such flights would also expose the helicopter crews to greater risks.
Source: AP<\/p>\n\n

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\nRussia offers to mediate Gaddafi\u2019s exit<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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With Gadhafi increasingly isolated and NATO jets intensifying their attacks, Russia may also be eyeing Libya\u2019s oil and gas and preparing for the prospect that the lucrative Libyan market will fall into full rebel control. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-431654","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"yoast_head":"\nRussia offers to mediate Gaddafi\u2019s exit - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/05\/28\/russia-offers-to-mediate-gaddafis-exit\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Russia offers to mediate Gaddafi\u2019s exit - Ghanamma.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"You Are Here: Home \u00bb Africa\/International \u00bb Russia offers to mediate Gaddafi\u2019s exit Page last updated at Saturday, May 28, 2011 5:05 AM \/\/ Muamar Gaddafi Russia abandoned one-time ally Moammar Gadhafi and offered Friday to mediate a deal for the Libyan leader to leave the country he has ruled for more than 40 years. 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