A city-based strategy for rebuilding Libya
Past Event
The overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 unleashed a long period of instability in Libya. Although elements of governance and a functional economy remain, Libya’s central institutions are weak, with militias and other non-state actors competing for state spoils, such as oil. This internal crisis has significant security ramifications for Libya and beyond: Besides presenting a potential source of terrorism, Libya’s ungoverned spaces have contributed to the unregulated flows of people from the Middle East and Africa to Europe. However, in recent years, the United States has been largely absent from international–including U.N.-led–efforts to restore governance in Libya.
On March 12, the Foreign Policy program at Brookings hosted an event to highlight a new collaborative report which outlines recommendations for the United States and other outside actors on a new policy in Libya. The crux of these recommendations is to focus the country’s economic, political, and security activity on its major cities, with the United States reinstating its embassy and ambassador.
Questions from the audience followed the panelists’ discussion.
Agenda
Opening Remarks
Panel Discussion
Michael E. O’Hanlon
Director of Research - Foreign Policy
Director - Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology
Co-Director - Africa Security Initiative
Senior Fellow - Foreign Policy, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology
The Sydney Stein, Jr. Chair
Philip H. Knight Chair in Defense and Strategy
Karim Mezran
Resident Senior Fellow, Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East - The Atlantic Council
Jeffrey Feltman
John C. Whitehead Visiting Fellow in International Diplomacy - Foreign Policy, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology
Federica Saini Fasanotti
Nonresident Senior Fellow - Foreign Policy, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology
Frederic Wehrey
Senior Fellow, Middle East Program - Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
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