In just a moment to the Foreign Relations committee will come to order and thank you to all those for being here. Todays hearing will examine the crisis in libya. Like to thank your witnesses for again appearing before the committee on this important issue. Unfortunately six years ago after they nato intervention in libya remains on the brink of civil war. Like many of its neighbors libya failed to transition into a stable Representative Democracy hoped for by the citizens following the arab spring. Sadly its a libyan people who have paid the price. Fighting between militias has undefined internal security, we can government institutions and damaged the economy. It is also posing substantial risk to the u. S. And to our allies. Infighting is created a permissive environment for terrorist groups like isis. The organizations gains in libya have led to u. S. Supported boteri options in places like sir. Conditions allowing extremists to thrive remain. I think any of us agree that the libyan political agreement needs to be altered and the current government lacks the power to actually govern the entire country. Thats only the beginning. Until the array of militias come under some type of simple political control no government will be able to provide potential services across the country. Even then libyas will still face enormous challenges to fix weak government institutions and turn around a struggling economy pretty look forward to our discussion today and hearing from our two witnesses on the views of the crisis and one needs to be done to bring about its peaceful resolution. We will be predicted interested to hear your views on what the u. S. Should do to help achieve the goals and with that and what we should expect devices or other radical groups regain ground in libya. We thank you both for being here ambassador i did want you to have to hear all of my Opening Statement so i went ahead and again with that i will turn it over who are distinguished Ranking Member senator cardin. Thank you mr. Chairman. I thought your Opening Statement was very important to be heard by all. I just want you to know that and i thank you very much for convening this hearing on libya. Yesterday i had the opportunity to represent this committee along with senator graham who is representing the appropriations committee. We met with ambassadors and our Nation Security council. We headed to our discussion and a very helpful discussion. We tracked down the whole reins of issues from north korea to reform within the United NationsAmbassador Haley is doing an incredible job representing our just and i think her leadership as the president of the Security Council will be important. Shes focusing on issues of reform and moving to issues of north korea and other areas that the United States has National Security interests. One of the issues that came up during that discussion by our friends in europe, our friends in africa and the middle east is what will be americas engagement . Will america be a power for the values that we stand for in dealing with global challenges . That was raised by our friends in europe and the middle east and africa. I say that the codes i start with the fact that the United States must be engaged. Its in our National Security interest to have a Representative Governments in countries like libya that represent all of the population because when we dont have a Representative Government what happens is it creates a void. That void is filled by isis as we have seen in northern africa. It is filled by russia and russias engagement which has not been helpful and we recognize its in americas National Security interests to get engaged. As you know we have the Trump Administration has yet to be able to fill a critical position and we are still not clear what his policies are with regards to libya. In a meeting with Prime Minister of italy President Trump said and im paraphrasing but we dont really have a role. We do have a role in libya and i think this hearing is an important indication by the congress that we do expect a role to be played. I want to just underscore the importance of representative inclusive government and theres no military solution. We have seen this all too frequently in so many countries in that region. We need an inclusive government, government that represents all of the different factions. We saw as the chairman pointed out under the leadership of the g a we were able to make progress and that was important but we also see with moscows involvement that the general in the eastern part of libya is causing all types of problems for civilian control of the country and participating in activities that in my mind raise concern about Human Rights Violations and war crimes. There is a role for us to play and if its done right we not only have a Representative Government with the management of Oil Resources to give them a growing economy and a growing standard of living. That is our goal and i think this hearing played an important part in the senates oversight of that responsibility and i look forward to hearing from her two witnesses. Thank you very much are those comments and we will turn to witnesses. The first witnesses dr. Fred wehrey senior if the endowment for peace. Our second witnesses the honorable Deborah Jones u. S. Ambassador to libya from 2013 to 2015. Thank you for bringing your expertise and knowledge and if you would give your opening comments in the order i just introduced you and introduced you and if you could summarize in five minutes we would appreciate it. Without objection your testimony will be entered into the record. Please proceed. Thank you. Chairman Corcoran CorkerRanking Member and Committee Members thank you for letting me spake and im honored to be with my copanelists. Today the u. N. Backs president and tripoli in tripoli is failing a basic government unable to establish itself amidst feuding militias and internal paralysis. More importantly the council confronts an existential challenge from an eastern faction led by the general backed by egypt United Arab Emirates and increasingly russia the ally parliament and east has refused to endorse the President Council counsel with this key objection being the issue of control over libyas military. Meanwhile the countries economic rent a surge of migrants across libya shores remains unchecked and jihadist militants whether in the form of the Islamic State ill qaeda or some new mutation could still take root. These looming dangers mr. Chairman demand immediate engagement from the United States. The most basic level the united United States faces two imperatives. First preventing the resurgence of terrorist activity and second supporting the formation of an inclusive representative stable government. On the counterterrorism from the libyan led campaign certs last summer in the Islamic State of many realtor attribute their remaining Islamic State militants estimated in the low hundreds are currently pulling in the west and south and may try to mount a highvisibility tab 2 show their continued viability. What struck me the most during my visit last year in the libyan areas of afflicted by jihadist presence whether cert benghazi or the west is any traction Islamic State that was highly transactional bull. Was the result of poor government and at this point the importance of a broad taste approach ended nine to tajada sanctuary. Nonmilitary strategies are essential promoting Economic Development in governance education in Civil Society form of vital adjunct. In the effort to identify local libyan partners to defeat terrorism the United States must proceed carefully. Given the absence of a truly National Cohesive military American Armed groups could upset the balance of power and cause greater factional conflict moving forward the nice fish on the back as forces controlled by international recognize governments and even this support should be limited in scope and geared toward specific threats but a second area where american diplomatic and gauge what is crucial is the formation of the new government. A starting point for doing this is a new libyan led dialogue backed by the United States with European Partners and the goal of the talk should be the amendment of the libyan political agreement of 2015 specifically the composition of the president s counsel. The new talks should focus on new tracks out of the first agreement. First they should include the leaders of libyas armed groups who must agree on a roadmap for building a National Level military structure. Hear an american red line must continue to be the elected civilian control over the military. Proposals for military rule or military counsel are hardly a recipe for enduring stability. For most libyans they run counter to the values for which they fought in the 2011 revolution. Second the talks must set up a mechanism for the transparence of oil revenues especially the municipal authorities. One such an agreement is in place the United States and its allies must stand ready to assist whatever government emerges is not just on counterterrorism. With its formal institutions get it to years of dictatorial rule libya citizens remain its greatest resource and this is why its so important the United States preserve its capacity to engage strictly with the libyan people. Mr. Chairman Committee Members by travels across libya during the past year underscore the desperation of the spy previously Islamic State was dealt a significant blow thanks in large measure to the sacrifices of brave libyans that libya is now more polarized than ever in the growing vacuum in feature radicalism. Aspen for American Leadership to avert the pending collapse safeguard american interests and help the country realized the early promise of its revolution. Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you here today. Chairman corker Ranking Member senator cardin and this distinguished mirza committed my apologies as a retiree. Never tell with the parking downtown coming in on a plane Tuesday Morning but it is my distinct honor to appear before you today on this important vexing matter and im pleased to appear with a colleague that i consider really authority them are the most honest authorities and voices on libya today. Libya has confounded and frustrated and exhausted policymakers and diplomatic tactician ors with this stubborn resistance to the obvious political mass of 1. 2 billion of oil a day caught up in the endorphins of revolution. Many assume libya like athena from the head of zeus would turn into dubai on the mediterranean and we could all go away. In hindsight clearly libya was not libya has a history like any other place in that history is one of fragmentation even preceding gadhafi. Or ive often said to people as gadhafi was not the creator of libyas fragmentation. He certainly exploited it using the oil wealth that he had at his disposal and i think its important to remember that he deposed king injury is without firing a shot. He used that oil well much as a cartel would do to disparate parts of the country libya has always existed as Julius Caesar said like three separate entities with different historical and political backgrounds and which explain to us often the different influences that play to this day in each of those regions for international partners. When gadhafi died in affect libya was the mafia without a don and that is the challenge that we have now. Gadhafi was gone but his legacy remains. Understanding the backdrop is very important to comprehend the deep divide in political antagonism that all of the revolution which i concluded not long after my rev legibly in 2013 was for all intents and purposes unfinished. There is a highly touted parliamentary vote in 2012 but essentially thats it with length of buying and purchasing a for a fountain pen that doesnt exist. I dont want to repeat of lot of what has been said here. Ive submitted a lengthy background note which i hope people agree contains a bit of a different narrative. Many people have described the splits and libya is somehow sick laird nationals versus islamists and others myself included and i expect doctors wehrey would agree and view the situation status quo elements some who were progadhafi versus revolutionary elements and some islamic with marginal ideological extremists on both sides. The revolution reveals together with true patriots a significant number found were educated in the United States and elsewhere in the west and some unabashed ideologues. I wont go into the whole narrative of the talks in the long talks there that i would agree with fred and his we looked over at overtime as we were there observing on the ground and working to advance their mutual interest it soon became clear to us is when we were dealing with area said that did not affect National Patrimony or the appearance of giving advantage to the military side we were able to accomplish things in the other hand efforts to train special forces and to respond to Prime Minister in april of 2013 to appeal to g7 leaders were frustrated due to that composition and the lack of any unified command and control. Interestingly throughout the gadhafi area eric technocrats with the National Bank of the National Oil Company were left largely alone to do their business indicating to me that libyans in fact did not want to disturb their wealth, their National Wealth. In fact we found that we worked pretty closely behind the scenes with them to ensure that that remained the case. Unfortunately in the latter years following negotiations there have been efforts by some to create competing authorities. To does mail it say the average libyan whose primary concern is that he or she have enough to be back to committee get into ideally travel. Against this background tripoli the government had for all intents and purposes removed itself from benghazi with the International Community and this is when he first appeared at the time in february, february of 2014 at the time of the egregious resolution and went on a television on what we called an electronic tube calling on libyans to rise up and join him against the illegal unlawful gnc he did not stir much response in that affect pretty underground only reappearing in may and benghazi when he declared his day sickly vigilante war against individuals he constituted for he condemned as responsible for anarchy. Together you know they story of the National Elections held in 2014. I hope you read carefully my paragraph on that because my narrative and understanding when i was on the ground is a bit different in response to counter threats into libyan tripoli and the declaration by the time that the dialogue was no longer necessary. The militias acted preemptively to drive the militias out of tripoli which meant taking them out of areas that they had conquered during the revolution. This is a lot again and again about duty about revolutionaries holding on with ap the airport to tripoli tower that helped Libyan Investment Authority the Islamic Call Center that was important under gadhafi later on in terms of territory. This fighting over this then can occupy territory that others felt they had no right to is what led to our withdrawal and the eventual withdrawal of all diplomatic members or diplomatic institutions or omissions in libya at the time. I will offer a couple of things against this chaotic background. Despite the political disarray the United States did conduct a number of missions successfully including the capture of while engaging with all sides in the political reconciliation talks and the support of the Libyan Government paid in other words this is not a matter of requiring us to pick and choose. Libyans were the first to assert the presence of iceland daish and removing them. We can talk about isolator but i think you have covered the road map there. Let me just same conclusion and we can get into questions later that libya is not engaged in a traditional civil war based on intractable ideological differences. The war of attrition in the controlling of destroying infrastructure in the absence of good Trump Administration. Historically exhaustion and poverty meant or physical have proven prom prime motivators but a