On 29 May, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2780, extending for six months the authorization for UN member states to inspect vessels suspected of violating the arms embargo on Libya.
The resolution permits member states, acting individually or through regional organizations, to carry out inspections on the high seas of ships bound to or from Libya if there are reasonable grounds to believe they are transporting arms or related materials in breach of the embargo.
The Resolution 2780 was adopted by 13 votes in favor, with Russia and China abstaining from the vote. Both countries expressed doubts about the effectiveness of the EU’s Operation IRINI and also raised concerns over how seized items are handled.
The resolution also requests that the UN Secretary-General report back to the Security Council within five months on the implementation of these measures.
To remind, the Security Council first imposed the arms embargo in 2011 following Libya’s political unrest and the fall of Muammar Gaddafi and later adopted Resolution 2292 in 2016 to authorize maritime inspections to enforce it.
