Gunfire once again echoes through Tripoli’s streets. Just last week, at least six people died as rival militias battled for control in Libya’s capital, turning residential neighborhoods into war zones.
While Libyans run for cover, the European Union stands at a safe distance, tossing money at the problem.
EU’s Costly Game of Keeping Libya at Arm’s Length
For over a decade, Libya has existed in a state of perpetual crisis. Since the NATO-backed uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the country has been trapped in a cycle of violence.
Rival governments and armed groups are vying for power.
The EU's response? Pour funds into humanitarian aid and migration control projects while avoiding the messy business of genuine political engagement.
The latest outbreak of violence erupted after the killing of powerful militia leader Abdelghani al-Kikli on Monday. Clashes between rival armed groups that supposedly answer to the same government.
Heavy artillery fire rocked densely populated areas.
Meanwhile, the EU issued yet another statement expressing “strong support” for a truce and “deep concern” for civilian casualties.
As always, the words hang empty in meaning, with little emphasis on solving Libya's ongoing civil war.
Writing Cheques While Ignoring the Root Cause
The EU’s approach to Libya throws money at the symptoms while ignoring the disease.
Brussels has channelled millions into what it calls “stability” projects. The “Baladiyati programme“, the UN Development Programme reports, finished over 700 initiatives across 40 municipalities.
On paper, this looks impressive: schools built, hospitals renovated, services delivered to "more than 3 million people." Yet these projects operate within a vacuum of political strategy.
Libyan society remains torn between two competing governments – the UN-recognised Government of National Unity in Tripoli led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, and a rival eastern administration backed by military commander Khalifa Haftar.
When armed groups can seize control of neighbourhoods at will, how much stability can a renovated school truly provide?
Instead of treating Libya as a political challenge that demands diplomatic engagement, the EU reduced it to a migration management problem.
Brussels has made a devil’s bargain: fund various projects in exchange for keeping migrants from reaching European shores.
Migration Fears Drive a Short-Sighted Strategy
What drives EU policy toward Libya: fear of migration.
The Libyan coast has become the main launching point for migrants and refugees attempting the perilous Mediterranean crossing to Europe.
The EU’s knee-jerk response funds initiatives that keep people in Libya, regardless of the human cost.
This fixation on migration has warped the EU’s approach.
Rather than working toward a stable Libyan state that could manage migration humanely, the EU has opted for quick fixes… often empowering the very militias fuelling the crisis.
When Prime Minister Dbeibah announced this week that “the time of parallel security systems has come to an end,” it wasn’t because of EU pressure for security sector reform but internal power struggles between armed groups, with civilians caught in the crossfire.
The Counterargument Falls Flat
Some might argue the EU is already doing enough – funding development projects, issuing statements, and supporting UN mediation efforts.
These voices might say deeper involvement risks making things worse or that Libya’s problems are too complex for outside solutions.
However, the fragmented, project-based funding without political strategy fails to yield stability after more than a decade.
The UN Support Mission in Libya struggles to make headway precisely because key international players – including EU member states – pursue competing agendas rather than a unified approach.
Consider the most recent violence. Here’s what the Crisis Group observed:
"Neither other armed groups from across western Libya nor forces loyal to the rival east-based government have yet entered the fray. Should they decide to do so, the capital could turn into an urban battlefield, of the sort last seen in 2022."
The EU knows this risk, but lacks the political will to act decisively.
Instead, it carries on with business as usual, processing grant applications while Libya burns.
A Unified Political Front Is The Only Way Forward
The EU must stop hiding behind project funding and engage politically with Libyan authorities as a united front.
This means developing a common European position on Libya, ending the harmful competition between member states pursuing divergent interests.
It requires using genuine diplomatic leverage to push for security sector reform and the integration of militias into a unified national force.
Brussels should make aid conditional on concrete steps toward political reconciliation between rival governments.
The EU must engage directly with all parties in the Libyan conflict, not just those controlling migration routes.
More than Money: Political Courage
The EU’s cheque-book approach to the Libyan crisis has failed.
After years of funding projects while avoiding political engagement, Libya remains a battleground where armed groups run rampant and rival governments compete for legitimacy.
Every time fighting breaks out in Tripoli, European leaders express shock and concern.
Yet their actions – or lack thereof – have helped perpetuate this cycle.
By taking the easy route of funding projects rather than tackling the hard work of unified political engagement, the EU has become part of the problem.
For ordinary Libyans and the wider Mediterranean region, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
A father in Tripoli's Dahra neighbourhood told reporters this week: "It's terrorising to witness all this intense fighting. I had my family in one room to avoid random shelling."
No amount of EU funding can compensate for such terror.
Only genuine political engagement, with Europe speaking with one voice, can help Libya find a path to stability. The time for half-measures is over.
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