"Ending all foreign military presence in the country cannot be achieved unless there is a legitimate authority that extends its control over the entire Libyan territory and enjoys the trust of all Libyans," Bathily said.
The UN official pointed out that a peaceful settlement and real progress in unifying the military and security institutions in Libya is not possible in conditions of political division.
At the same time, Bathily said he was satisfied with the statements made by the military leaders in the 5+5 Joint Military Commission (JMC).
"In all our meetings, I sensed their high sense of patriotism. They expressed willingness to reunite the Libyan army when the political division is resolved and legitimate institutions are elected," he said.
Bathily also said that the JMC achieved some progress on the issue of the presence of foreign military forces in Libya but acknowledged that more work remains to be done to restore respect for Libya's sovereignty.
"The degenerating situation in Sudan and the Sahel has compromised efforts to prepare for mercenaries and foreign fighters to return to their countries," he added.
In February, the JMC approved the establishment of an integrated mechanism for joint coordination and data exchange to facilitate the full withdrawal of mercenaries and foreign fighters from Libya.
Libya has been grappling with multiple crises after the 2011 collective West orchestrated the overthrew of the country's longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi and created a power vacuum that split the nation into rival factions. The United Nations has attempted to fill the void by helping Libyans hold a general election, although internal divisions led it to cancel the vote set for 2021.