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NATO concerned about increased Russia presence in the Eastern Med

June 17, 2020 at 11:24 am

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in Munich, Germany on 15 February 2020 [Abdulhamid Hoşbaş / Anadolu Agency]

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said yesterday that the alliance is concerned about the increasing Russian presence in the Eastern Mediterranean, and reports of mass graves in the Libyan city of Tarhuna.

Speaking at a press conference, Stoltenberg added that the situation in Libya is very complicated and dangerous, expressing NATO’s concern about the increasing Russian presence in the region.

He affirmed his support for the United Nations investigation into the mass graves discovered in Tarhuna.

He stressed the need for the parties to the Libyan conflict to negotiate a peaceful political solution, expressing his support for the outcomes of the Berlin Conference on Libya.

READ: Russia’s strategy in the Mediterranean may boost US support for Turkey

Earlier yesterday, the European Union stressed the need to open an “urgent” independent investigation into the mass graves discovered in Tarhuna, south-east of the capital, Tripoli.

The Libyan army had found 106 bodies in a hospital in Tarhuna city after it was cleared of the militia of the renegade General Khalifa Haftar on 5 June.

Last month, Russia deployed fighter  aircrafts to Libya to support Russian mercenaries who are battling for Haftar, US military leaders said.