Mr. President, China thanks Special Representative Mr. Salamé and Ambassador Schoulgin Nyoni for their briefings. China also listened attentively to the statement made by Ms. Sharief.

At present, Libyans are striving to restore peace and stability. However, the country still faces multiple challenges, including difficulties in their political process, a fragile security environment and rampant terrorist activity, as well as the large-scale movements of refugees and migrants. All Libyan parties should place the overall interests of the country and the vital interests of its people above all else and jointly take active measures to promote the peace process. The international community should continue to provide concrete support to that end.

First of all, all actors should remain committed to the overarching objective of seeking a political settlement to Libyan issue. The future of Libya should be determined by the Libyan people themselves. The international community should respect the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Libya, and continue to promote a Libyan-led and Libyan-owned political settlement process. All Libyan parties should resolve their differences through inclusive dialogue and find a solution that accommodates all interests through political means. The Libyan Political Agreement is a fundamental framework for ending the Libyan crisis and contributes to national reconciliation and the restoration of national governance.

Secondly, the international community should create favorable security conditions for Libyan political dialogue. China supports Libya’s efforts towards safeguarding national security and stability. We hope that all actors in Libya will bolster dialogue, continuously build mutual trust, work towards building unified national armed forces and take united and concerted counter-terrorism action so as to effectively reduce the threat of terrorism.

Thirdly, the United Nations role as the main channel of mediations should be preserved. Special Representative Salamé has led the phased return of the UNSMIL. In line with the United Nations action plan of promoting the Libyan political process, he has facilitated extensive dialogue among all Libyan stakeholders, conducted in-depth discussions on such issue as drafting a constitution and made headway in the electoral process. Some progress has been achieved. The international community must enhance its confidence, maintain its patience and continue to support Special Representative Salamé’s efforts to press ahead with the action plan prudently. We hope that all parties concerned including Libya’s neighboring countries, the African Union, the League of Arab States and the European Union will increase their support to the Libyan political process.

China will continue to follow developments closely and support all efforts to stabilize the situation on the ground, promote the political process for settling the Libyan question and help all Libyan parties to unite in combating terrorism. China stands ready to make its contribution to the early restoration of peace, stability and prosperity in Libya.

Thank you, Mr. President.