BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th January, 2020) Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke briefly with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, before the start of the international conference on Libyan conflict settlement in the German capital on Sunday, a Sputnik correspondent reported.
Russia's acting Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also took part in the conversation. A few minutes later, the three of them sat down at the negotiating table in the hall, where the conference is being held.
Before entering the hall, Putin and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo shook hands.
Berlin is hosting talks among the two Libyan rival administrations and international actors to find solutions to the longstanding conflict in the North African country.
In Libya, the confrontation between the internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) of Fayez Sarraj and the rival Libyan National Army (LNA) of Khalifa Haftar has practically split the oil-rich country into a duopoly since 2011. Over the past several weeks, the situation has escalated amid LNA's advance on the GNA-held Libyan capital of Tripoli.
Russia and Turkey have negotiated a ceasefire in Libya starting January 12 and mediated talks between Sarraj and Haftar in Moscow this past Monday. The meeting, however, failed to result in an official ceasefire agreement.
