Margelov says Libyan opposition can be dealt with

MOSCOW, June 12 (Itar-Tass) - Mikhail Margelov, Russia's special envoy
for Libyan settlement, said on Saturday that Libyan opposition could be
dealt with.
Margelov has just returned from Benghazi, which visited earlier this
week to mediate the Libyan settlement.
He disagreed with Colonel Gaddafi's statement that Libya's opposition
National Transitional Council unites exclusively members of radical
movements.
"I don't have the impression that it's all sheer Al-Quaeda. Naturally,
the Libyan National Transitional Council has people with radical views but
they include a former minister of the Gaddafi government and the former
ambassadors. In short, they are part of the country's political elite,"
Margelov said in an interview with a Russian TV news program (Vesti v
Subbotu) late on Saturday.
"It's possible to deal with them. In fact, what they are saying and
how they are saying produce a feeling of respect," Margelov emphasized.
He said that the Libyan opposition had suggested that Russia open its
mission in Benghazi. The request came from the National Transitional
Council. Margelov believes that in this matter "pragmatism prevails over
ideology."
"It's clear that the people in Benghazi have real power over a clear
part of the Libyan territory. They are those who will certainly enter some
future national unity government," Margelov said.