TRIPOLI, Libya

Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh held talks Sunday in the capital Tripoli with UK Deputy Chief of Defense Staff Air Marshal Harvey Smyth on ways to enhance military cooperation between their two countries.

The meeting took place in the presence of the Chief of General Staff of the Libyan Army, Mohammed Al-Haddad, and British Ambassador Martin Longden, according to a statement from the official “Our Government” platform.

It said the discussions focused on "ways to enhance military cooperation between Libya and the United Kingdom, support and build Libyan military capabilities, and cooperation in training and development areas."

It quoted Dbeibeh as emphasizing "the importance of strengthening the partnership with the United Kingdom in the military field to improve the efficiency of Libyan institutions."

Smyth expressed the UK's readiness to "enhance cooperation with Libya in military training and qualification to achieve stability and build defense institutions," according to the official platform.

His visit also came amid UN and local efforts to bring Libya to elections to resolve the crisis between two rival governments. One is the Government of National Unity headed by Dbeibeh based in Tripoli (west), which administers the western part of the country and is recognized by the United Nations.

The other was appointed by the House of Representatives in early 2022, headed by Osama Hamad and based in Benghazi, which manages the eastern part of the country and most of the south.

Libyans hope the long-awaited elections will bring an end to political and armed conflicts and conclude the transitional periods that have followed the ouster of Muammar Gaddafi's regime, which ruled from 1969-2011.