Saddam Haftar Meets U.S. Secretary of State Rubio on Libyan Unification Efforts

Saddam Haftar, son of Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar, met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on June 29 to discuss efforts to unify Libya's military, economic, and political institutions, according to a State Department readout. Massad Boulos, U.S.

Senior advisor for Africa, described the broader U.S. plan as one aimed at creating a single unified government and consolidating institutions. Foreign Policy reported that the meeting marked a significant diplomatic step even though no formal agreement was announced.

The discussions build on an April 11 agreement that produced Libya's first formally unified national budget since 2014. The $30.1 billion budget requires elites to reduce spending by roughly 40 percent from 2024 levels after state expenditures rose from $18.5 billion in 2021 to more than $50 billion in 2024.

Libya's east remains under the control of the Haftar family through the Libyan Arab Armed Forces, while the west is led by the internationally recognized Government of National Unity headed by Prime Minister Abdel Hamid al-Dbeibah.

The Government of National Unity took office in 2021 after elections scheduled for December of that year collapsed. Foreign Policy reported that the budget deal was reached through direct talks between Ibrahim Dbeibah, the prime minister's nephew and national security advisor, and Saddam Haftar, bypassing many competing state institutions.

The United States has backed a technical committee to oversee implementation.

The same reporting noted that 94 state institutions holding financial resources have been placed under the prime minister's office since 2021. Earlier attempts at budget agreements through joint committees had failed repeatedly.