France has accused Turkey of playing an aggressive and unacceptable role in Libya, and said that NATO will discuss the issue, while Ankara denied that there is a dispute between it and Moscow over the basic principles for establishing a cease-fire in Libya, after postponing discussions between the foreign ministers of the two countries the day before yesterday. Sunday.
A French presidential official said on Monday that talks will be held in the coming days under the umbrella of NATO, including Turkey, to discuss the "aggressive" and "unacceptable" Turkish role in Libya.
The official accused Turkey - a member of NATO - of violating the UN ban on arming Libya and increasing its maritime presence off its coast, which threatens efforts to reach a ceasefire in Libya.
It is expected that the defense ministers of NATO member states will meet on Wednesday and Thursday.
French Foreign Ministry
In the same direction, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement denouncing any ongoing foreign interference in Libya, especially by mentioning the Turkish role, which it said was "unacceptable and must end."
The statement said that the Libyan government of reconciliation continued the attack with "enormous" Turkish support, despite agreeing to discuss a ceasefire.
And Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier this month that France's support for retired Libyan Major General Khalifa Hifter "really disturbed him."
Relations between Paris and Ankara are currently experiencing a period of tension, against the backdrop of political differences in the files of Libya, Syria and eastern Mediterranean oil.
Turkey supports the Libyan reconciliation government militarily under a security agreement signed by the two sides last November, while Paris accuses of supporting Haftar's forces, along with Egypt, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Russia.
In a related context, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that the eastern Mediterranean situation is getting worse.
Borrell told a news conference that the European Union was concerned about the escalation of tension in Libya.
He said that the Council of Foreign Ministers of the European Union countries will discuss relations with Turkey in light of the current disturbing events.
Ihsanoglu 's remarks
on the other hand, denied the Turkish foreign minister born Jawish Ihsanoglu differences between his country and Russia on the basic principles of a ceasefire in Libya, following the postponement of the two talks on the cessation of fighting in Libya was to be held the first Sunday in Turkey.
Ihsanoglu added that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish Erdogan had agreed on joint work for a ceasefire in Libya, noting that the talks between the two parties will continue "at the technical level in order to consolidate the truce, as well as to define the details of the steps that must be taken after the ceasefire ".
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov did not go to Istanbul on Sunday to meet his Turkish counterpart as scheduled.
"One of the main issues that led to the postponement of Lavrov's visit is the (reconciliation government) plan to launch an operation in Sirte, which has become a target," Reuters quoted a Turkish official, speaking on condition of anonymity, as saying.
"He was supposed to reach a result, but it was not possible to reach this stage ... There are issues in which the two countries stand on opposite sides," the official said.
The same source stated that there are ongoing talks between the two sides at the expert level through back channels.
On Sunday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said it was seeking "an immediate ceasefire" in Libya, and indicated that Lavrov would reschedule a date for the meeting with his Turkish counterpart.
On the other hand, two military bases , Turkey is in talks with the Libyan Al-Wefaq government on the possible use of the al-Wataya air base and the Misurata naval base.
A Turkish source told Reuters that Ankara and Tripoli are discussing the possibility of Turkey using the two military bases to consolidate the Turkish presence in the southern Mediterranean.
The source pointed out that no final decisions have yet been taken regarding the possible Turkish military use of the two bases, one of which has been regained by the Al-Wefaq government (Al-Watiyah base) in the past few weeks by Haftar forces.
A spokesman for the Turkish Justice and Development Party, Omar Glick, did not deny the move to discuss using Ankara, the two bases in Libya, and said that Turkey would provide all possible support to the internationally recognized reconciliation government.