BAYDA, Libya, October 20 (RIA Novosti) – Libyan Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thani said Monday in an interview with RIA Novosti he and members of the government are planning to visit Russia in late October or November.
"We are planning to visit Russia, if not at the end of this month, then at the end of the month following," the prime minister said.
Russia is Libya's main partner in reforming the country’s armed forces, he said.
"Approximately 80 percent of [Libyan Army] weapons are from Russia or CIS countries. We believe that the development of ties with Russia would be preferable, as Russian weapons are the most commonly used here," al-Thani told RIA Novosti.
Libya has not asked Russia for any help yet, but Moscow could assist the country in rebuilding its infrastructure and arming the military, according to the politician.
The Libyan prime minister did not rule out staging military drills on the territory of Russia. "Many of Libyan officers studied in the Soviet Union ... we are working on policy of openness with all countries, including on the issue of the drills," al-Thani said.
Libya and Moscow have joint projects in railways and in the oil and gas sector, al-Thani said, adding that these industries are open to Russian companies.
When asked about the Russian projects, which have been frozen due to the Libyan revolution of 2011, al-Thani said that the eastern part of the country, except for the cities of Benghazi and Derna are safe.
"Businessmen can visit and examine the situation, invest directly in the infrastructure of the region, or its economy, or construction," the politician said.
Libya has been in crisis since the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi and the subsequent civil war. After the conflict, the country has seen violent clashes between numerous militias, armed with weapons seized from government ammunition depots.
The country is theoretically governed by a parliament known as the House of Representatives, elected in the June elections. However its control of Libya is severely limited by the country’s internal conflict with Islamist militias, which control Tripoli. Officially, the House of Representatives took over from the General National Congress, which was elected in 2012 to serve until January 2014. However, a minority of the General National Congress, having lost the elections, reconvened in August. This New General National Congress meets in Tripoli, while the elected House of Representatives meets in Tobruk.
