The head of the Russian contact group on Libya, Lev Dengov, has stated that his country does not believe that the time is right for lifting the arms embargo imposed on Libya by the United Nations.

Dengov told the Italian news agency Nova that it is premature to lift the ban until a central authority and consensus was formed on who should lead and control the Libyan armed forces.

The head of the Russian contact group stated that the delivery of any new weapons to opposing Libyan parties would lead to an escalation in the current conflict and would no doubt create a real arms race in the country, stressing the need to prevent that from happening under any circumstances.

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