Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogana received the Prime Minister of the new Libyan government Abdel Hamid Dbeibah on Monday. An extensive visit: 14 ministers and several senior officials accompanied the head of the Libyan government. The program strengthened economic cooperation, especially in hydrocarbons.
During a joint press conference held early in the evening, Recep Tayyip Erdogan first recalled Turkey’s commitment to respect “the integrity and sovereignty of Libyan territory”. Despite accusations and calls for withdrawal from the international community, Ankara has never officially acknowledged the presence of Turkish mercenaries on Libyan soil.
The Turkish president then announced a series of cooperation with Libya. First and foremost, the military to “stop the massacres” and avoid the fall of Tripoli, then health with the special donation of 150,000 doses of vaccines against Covid-19 and finally financially with the promise of massive investment from Turkish companies.
Maintenance of the Mediterranean Resources Agreement
Another important announcement is the imminent reopening of the Turkish consulate in Benghazi in the east of the country while this area is still under the control of Marshal Haftar. But also the maintenance of the controversial agreement on the use of marine resources, which was negotiated in 2019 by its predecessor toAbdel Hamid Dbeibah, Fayez el-Sarraj.
In his speech, the Libyan Prime Minister, for his part, emphasized the importance of Turkey’s role in ensuring a lasting ceasefire in Libya and assured that Turkish companies would play an important role in rebuilding the country.
Few European states are willing to invest in Libya. Turkey is a stunt country. It is a country that dares to inject millions into the Libyan market. And this opening to the Libyan market will place Ankara as a partner state.
Asni Abidi, a researcher specializing in Libya
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