By RFIPosted on 02-01-2020Modified on 02-01-2020 at 00:32

The Turkish parliament is called on Thursday (January 2nd) to debate a motion authorizing the deployment of soldiers in Libya. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who signed a military agreement at the end of November with Libyan Prime Minister Fayez el-Sarraj, intends to strengthen his support for the government of Tripoli in the face of the offensive by Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the strong man of the is Libyan.

With our correspondent in Istanbul , Anne Andlauer

A threat to " the interests of Turkey in the Mediterranean basin and in North Africa ", this is how the resolution submitted to the vote of Turkish deputies describes the offensive against the government of Libyan national unity and its capital, Tripoli . And this is how Recep Tayyip Erdogan justifies to the Turks his intention to deploy soldiers in this country " on the ground, at sea and in the air if necessary ", in the words of the Head of State.

The challenge for Turkey is therefore regional. It is a question of not leaving the field free - militarily and, consequently, diplomatically - to countries which it considers as rivals and which chose to support the forces of Khalifa Haftar. " What are they coming to do in Libya? ", Denounced Recep Tayyip Erdogan a few days ago, citing in particular Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

This projection of Turkish power also aims to defend major economic and strategic interests. Ankara would never have concluded a military cooperation agreement with the Tripoli government, if the latter had not agreed to sign a maritime agreement simultaneously. This agreement allows Turkey to assert rights over large areas of the eastern Mediterranean rich in hydrocarbons and disputed by Greece, Egypt, Cyprus and Israel.

► No solution in Libya without Turkey, says Erdogan

Faced with great international and regional support from Khalifa Haftar (Russia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and France), Turkey has tried to rally two neighboring countries of Libya, Tunisia and Algeria. Since 2011, Tunis has adopted neutrality in the face of the Libyan conflict. Algiers is closer to the government of Fayez el-Sarraj and categorically opposes any military intervention in Libya.

The two countries have refused to accept Ankara, which is seeking border allies with Libya before sending its troops. However, Tunisia, Algeria and Turkey had protested against their exclusion from the Berlin conference scheduled for February.

As for Egypt, whose interests are very threatened by a possible intervention in Libya, it has multiplied international contacts to counter Ankara. President Al-Sissi warned: " Libya is a matter of Egyptian national security ". Cairo and Paris have warned of regional escalation.

The project of political Islam

Ankara, which had opposed NATO's intervention in Libya in 2011, today wants to be part of the solution. " Any solution that does not include Turkey has no chance of succeeding, " said the Turkish president.

Before 2011, Ankara was investing $ 30 billion in Libya. The Libyan market is a door to Africa for Turkey. It is therefore inconceivable for him to lose this market. Ankara even wants to increase its investments and exports to Libya. The Turkish state also shows its willingness to participate in the reconstruction of the country.

Finally, Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a support of the Muslim brothers in the Arab countries. The project of political Islam has failed in Tunisia, Egypt, Sudan and Syria. By supporting the Islamist-backed national unity government, Ankara also hopes to safeguard its interests in Libya.

RFI

Ankara has already started to send Syrian fighters to Libya

The 2011 uprising in Syria saw the birth of a "Free Syrian Army" bringing together rebel fighters fighting against the army of Bashar al-Assad, with the support of the West, Gulf countries and Turkey. After a series of conquests, the Free Syrian Army was gradually defeated by Damascus troops supported by Russian and Iranian forces. The ASL has also been challenged by jihadist organizations, such as the Islamic State group.

Weakened, losing its subsidies from the Gulf and the West, the Free Syrian Army has transformed into a force serving Turkish objectives in the region. Renamed "Syrian National Army", it was at the forefront of the various Turkish military incursions in northern Syria, this time with the Syrian Kurds, the bane of Ankara, as its enemy.

Henceforth, it is on the Libyan theater that these Syrian auxiliaries are being talked about, always as instruments of Turkey's regional ambitions.

RFI

    On the same subject

    Arab League against interference in Libya

    Syrian mercenaries sent by Turkey present in Libya

    Turkey: Erdogan asks parliament to allow soldiers to go to Libya

    Libya: Macron and al-Sissi call for "maximum restraint"

    Libya: Marshal Haftar puts pressure on Tripoli

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