Russia is planning to arm a Libyan general who has been fighting the western-backed government in Tripoli, according to aides of the strongman.
General Khalifa Hiftar, 73, who has been denounced by the UN-supported government as a terrorist, held high-level talks last week aboard the Russian aircraft carrier stationed in the Mediterranean. In the past seven months he has also met the Russian foreign and defence ministers to seek support and weapons.
The Kremlin backed Muammar Gaddafi during the 2011 uprising and has since taken a key role across the region, ordering the bombing of President Assad’s foes in Syria and throwing its weight behind General Hiftar. Last month Gennady Gatilov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, criticised the UN and the West for backing rival armed