On a trip by their defence ministers to Tripoli, Qatar and Turkey reiterated their support for Libya’s internationally recognised government
Turkey has provided military support to the UN-brokered Government of National Accord (GNA) to help it stave off a 14-month assault from rival forces based in eastern Libya. While Turkey and its regional ally Qatar support the GNA, forces in the east led by renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar have received backing from the UAE, Egypt and Russia.
“We believe that we will achieve the wanted results by supporting our Libyan brothers in their just cause,” Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said in Tripoli on Monday.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs H E Dr Khalid bin Mohamed Al Attiyah and Hulusi Akar met President of Libya’s High Council of State Khalid Al Mishri in Tripoli on Monday.
During the meeting, they discussed the latest developments in Libya. The meeting was attended by Qatari Ambassador Mohamed bin Nasser bin Jassim Al Thani and senior officers of the Qatari Armed Forces.
Turkey signed a military accord with the GNA late last year, as well as an MoU on maritime boundaries, that rattled its rivals in the eastern Mediterranean. Akar and Chief of Staff General Yasar Guler were in Tripoli to “observe the operations” under the military cooperation deal with Libya, according to Turkey’s Defence Ministry.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who met his Libyan counterpart but not the Turkish or Qatari delegations, said the process started in Berlin remained the framework for resolving the conflict, and backed calls for a demilitarised zone around Sirte. “We see a deceptive calm in Libya right now. Both sides and their international allies are continuing to arm the country on a massive scale and are sticking to preconditions for a ceasefire,” he said.
Maas stressed the need to begin direct talks between the two parties and stop the escalation near Sirte, the site of recent military confrontations. He also called for the lifting of the oil blockade and the equitable distribution of the war-wracked country’s vast oil wealth.
Libyan Foreign Minister Mohamed Taher Siala said his country does not need more initiatives to resolve the conflict but a constitution that paves the way for democratic elections. Siala added the GNA strongly rejected Operation Irini, a EU mission aimed at enforcing a toothless 2011 UN arms embargo, saying it “does not monitor the transfer of weapons and mercenaries to the aggressor”.