Merkel said she hoped that ongoing Turkish-Russian efforts to secure peace in Libya would be successful Chancellor in Moscow for talks with Putin amid growing tensions in the Middle East MOSCOW: Germany"s chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday Berlin would host a Libya peace summit, following a meeting in Moscow with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Putin had said on Saturday the time had come for peace talks on the Libyan crisis, adding that it was important that the conflict in the country was ended. Merkel said she hoped that ongoing Turkish-Russian efforts to secure peace in Libya would be successful. Their comments came after Merkel arrived in Moscow on Saturday for talks with Putin amid growing tensions in the Middle East and elsewhere. Merkel and German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas traveled to the Russian capital for discussions about Libya and other international hot spots including Iran, Syria, Iraq and Ukraine. Earlier in the week, the German leader"s spokesman described Russia as “indispensable when it comes to solving political conflicts” due to its status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council. “Russia is an important player on the world stage, and as a permanent member of the (U.N.) Security Council it’s also indispensable when it comes to solving political conflicts,” Steffen Seibert, the chancellor’s spokesman, said earlier in the week while previewing the visit. Germany is currently a non-permanent member of the Security Council. Germany and Russia are among the world powers that have been trying to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran after the United States withdrew from the agreement unilaterally in 2018. (With Reuters)