Libya's foreign ministry summoned the US charge d'affaires on Sunday to protest against remarks by President Donald Trump at a rally in Perry, Georgia, on Saturday. The ministry described the remarks as offensive, after Trump called Libya terror-infested while attacking a Democratic senator's record on migration.

What each side said

The ministry said it rejected any statements that undermine the dignity of its people or diminish their standing. Both of Libya's rival administrations, in the east and the west, denounced the remarks and rejected attempts to draw Libya into what they called electoral debates, Reuters reported.

Trump responded on Truth Social on Sunday night, saying the United States was committed to ties with Libya and calling its people proud, resilient and hospitable and deserving of peace and prosperity. He added that the US respected the sacrifices brave Libyans made fighting Islamic State, described as the common enemy of both peoples, but said Libya cannot remain a corridor for illegal migration and that this must end now.

Why the row matters

The exchange shows how campaign rhetoric in the United States can spill into diplomacy with countries named in it. Libya has been divided since its 2011 uprising between a UN-recognised government in Tripoli and eastern authorities aligned with military commander Khalifa Haftar, and migration across the Mediterranean remains a live issue for both Libyan authorities and European governments.

The summons itself is a formal diplomatic protest, not a break in relations: summoning an envoy is the standard way a government registers an objection while keeping channels open. What happens next will depend on whether either side escalates the language further or lets the protest stand as the response.