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Amount of arms already in Libya diminished role of UN embargo (Photo: unsmil.unmissions.org)

Feature

Why do EU arms end up in Libya despite UN ban?

Amount of arms already in Libya diminished role of UN embargo (Photo: unsmil.unmissions.org)

French arms sold to Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) risk ending up in Libya, in violation of a UN ban.

But if the war is one of "who dares wins", then should EU states resort to realpolitik despite their code of good behaviour?

Those were the questions posed by the latest EU figures, which showed France granted permits worth €14.1bn for arms deals with Egypt in 2018.

It also gra...

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Author Bio

Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.

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