Erdogan calls on Europe to support Turkey’s stance in Libya

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on Europe to support its work in Libya, where it is providing military support to the internationally-recognized government, if it wants to end the conflict there.

According to the details, Erdogan made his remarks in a column published on the Politico website on Saturday, ahead of a summit in Berlin on Sunday that will try to stabilize the country.

Erdogan: Road to peace in Libya goes through Turkey

On the other hand, At the meeting, Germany and the United Nations will push rival Libyan camps fighting over the capital, Tripoli, to agree to a truce and monitoring mechanism as first steps toward peace, diplomats and a draft communique said.

Turkey supports the government of Fayez al-Serraj in Tripoli and describes Khalifa Haftar, who heads the eastern Libyan National Army (LNA), as a coup plotter.

“EU’s potential failure to adequately support Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) would be a betrayal of its own core values, including democracy and human rights,” Erdogan said.

The summit will put pressure on Haftar and the LNA to halt a nine-month offensive against Tripoli after a week-long lull in fighting. But it will not try to broker power-sharing between the two sides, said diplomats briefed on preparations.

Haftar and Serraj are both due in Berlin – along with Erdogan and the leaders of Russia, Egypt and other Western and Arab powers. Libya has been in turmoil since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Erdogan said that if Libya’s legitimate government were to fall Islamist militant groups such as Islamic State and Al Qaeda “will find a fertile ground to get back on their feet”.

Turkey demands compensation for debts owed from Libya

Earlier in this month, Turkey’s parliament has approved a bill to deploy troops to Libya in support of the embattled United Nations-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA), paving the way for increased military cooperation despite criticism from opposition legislators.

Turkish lawmakers voted 325-184 at an emergency session in favour of allowing a one-year mandate to deploy troops and follows a request for assistance by the beleaguered Tripoli government, which has been under sustained attack since April by warlord Khalifa Haftar.

According to the details, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s office confirmed last Friday that a request for military support had been received from the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA).