Turkey defends military action in Libya after Paris conference
Ibrahim Kalin, the spokesperson for Turkish President Recep Tayip Erdogan.
© Ozan KOSE / AFP
Text by: RFI Follow
1 min
The day after the international conference held in Paris during which participants called for the withdrawal of foreign forces from the country, the Ankara authorities reacted on Saturday.
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The Turkish military presence constitutes "
a force of stability
" and an "
aid to the Libyan people
".
It is done within the framework of "
an agreement with the Libyan government
", and cannot be put "
on the same level as mercenaries who are taken by other countries
" ...
The update is signed by Ibrahim Kalin, the spokesperson for Turkish President Recep Tayip Erdogan, via Agence France-Presse.
“
Sometimes our allies raise this issue as if the Turkish presence is the main problem in Libya.
This is not the case,
”he added ...
On Friday, participants in
the Paris conference
supported a "
plan for the departure of foreign forces and mercenaries
", and French President Emmanuel Macron urged Russia and Turkey to withdraw "
without delay
" their "
mercenaries
".
8,000 troops deployed in Libya by Turkey
However, Ankara, which
signed
a military cooperation agreement with the government in Tripoli
in November 2019
, believes that its commitment is not of the same nature as that of Moscow with Marshal Haftar, via the private company Wagner.
According to some estimates, Turkey has deployed some 8,000 troops in Libya, of which it has become a major partner.
Military aid to Tripoli was accompanied by an economic agreement allowing the Turks to access the gas riches of the eastern Mediterranean.
► See also: Libya: disagreement between Tripoli and Turkey on the presence of foreign forces
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Libya
Defense
Turkey