Khalifa Haftar, the strongman of eastern Libya, demanded on Monday a fair distribution of oil revenues, giving until the end of August to do so.

A “higher committee tasked with implementing financial arrangements for the fair management of public funds”, including oil revenues, must be formed, Marshal Haftar told army officers at his general headquarters in Razma (25km east of Benghazi) .

He gave a deadline “until the end of August for this commission to complete its mission.” If there is no solution, “the armed forces will be ready to act as soon as they receive orders when the time comes,” he added, without elaborating.

Libya, the country with Africa’s largest oil reserves, remains mired in chaos after the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime, undermined by the east-west divide.

Two governments continue to claim power: one based in Tripoli (west), recognized by the UN and headed by Abdelhamid Dbayba, the other in the east, supported by Marshal Haftar.

Revenues from oil exports, the north African country’s main source of revenue, are often disputed between various parties; they are managed by the Tripoli-based National Petroleum Corporation and the central bank.

On June 24, Osama Hamad, the head of the parallel government based in the east, threatened that hydrocarbon exports would be suspended.

In a late June Twitter post, U.S. Ambassador Richard Norland “urged Libyan political actors to abandon threats to suspend oil production, which would be extremely harmful to the Libyan economy and the Libyan people.”

This message from Washington was met with dissatisfaction in eastern Libya, which saw meddling in the country’s internal affairs, and was described as an “insult” by Marshal Haftar.

“The ambassadors of some countries, above all the so-called Norland (…) failed to contribute to the solution of the Libyan crisis and, on the contrary, deepened the differences between the Libyans,” Khalifa Haftar said in his speech, broadcast by al-Hadath television network.

“Stop poking your nose into the affairs of the Libyans,” which will proceed at some point without “your interference,” snapped the marshal, cheered by his officers.