The Italian Nova Agency reported on Thursday that current discussions are centered around key issues such as the management of the private oil company “Arkenu”, the unification of the state budget, financial sustainability, and control over oil revenues.
According to the agency, the Libyan Development and Reconstruction Fund, led by Belqasem Haftar, has preemptively announced its rejection of the outcomes of the so-called “structured dialogue” promoted by the United Nations on the economic file, raising doubts about the legitimacy of the process even before its conclusion.
Sources told Nova Agency that a meeting is expected to take place in Tunisia in the coming days between representatives of Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity, Abdul Hamid Dbeibah. Attendees are expected to include Minister of State for Communication and Political Affairs Walid Al-Lafi, Ibrahim Dbeibah, and figures close to Saddam Haftar. Among them is Rifaat Al-Abbar, Deputy Minister of Oil and Gas in the parallel Libyan government based in Benghazi. Disputes revolve around major issues such as the management of the private Libyan oil company “Arkno,” the first and only company to break the monopoly of the National Oil Corporation, as well as the unification of the state budget, financial sustainability, and oversight of oil revenues—including funds deposited outside the official channels of the Libyan Foreign Bank.
The agency noted that, more broadly, the situation remains complex due to allegations contained in the latest report by the United Nations Panel of Experts, which describes a large-scale system of interference in the energy sector and illegal smuggling networks. The experts attribute both direct and indirect roles to influential figures in eastern Libya, including Saddam Haftar, in controlling sectors and protecting smuggling networks.
The report also highlights the creation of parallel mechanisms capable of influencing decisions within the National Oil Corporation, including through intermediaries such as Rifaat Al-Abbar. At the same time, the document confirms that these dynamics also involve western actors, including circles close to the Dbeibeh government, with both state and non-state actors able to influence financial flows and decision-making processes. Overall, a system has emerged in which official and parallel structures coexist, making the energy sector one of the main arenas of competition among power centers in the country.
According to the agency, in this context, the position taken by the Reconstruction Fund led by Belqasem Haftar not only indicates a fracture within the UN process but also reflects a broader competition for control over economic and financial instruments—one that goes beyond the east-west divide and disrupts the internal balance of power within the eastern bloc itself.
