Turkey may not send forces to Libya if conflict eases

Duvar English / Reuters

Turkey may hold off from sending troops to Libya if forces loyal to eastern commander Khalifa Haftar halt their offensive against the internationally recognized government in Tripoli and pull back, the Turkish vice president said on Jan. 1.

The Turkish parliament is due to debate and vote on a bill mandating the deployment of military forces to Libya on Jan. 2 after Fayez al-Serraj's Government of National Accord (GNA) requested support as part of a military cooperation agreement.

"After the bill passed from the parliament...it might happen that we would see something different, a different stance and they would say "okay, we are withdrawing, dropping the offensive"," Fuat Oktay said in an interview with state-run Anadolu Agency. "Then, why would we go there?"

Oktay also said that Ankara hoped the Turkish bill would send a deterrent message to the warring parties.

The GNA has been struggling to fend off Haftar’s forces from eastern Libya, which have been supported by Russia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Jordan.

They have failed to reach the center of Tripoli but have made small gains in recent weeks in some southern suburbs of the capital with the help of Russian and Sudanese fighters, as well as drones shipped by the UAE, diplomats say.

TheChinese-made drones have given Haftar “local air superiority” asthey can carry over eight times the weight of explosives than thedrones given to the GNA by Turkey and can also cover thewhole of Libya, a U.N. report said in November.

On Nov. 27, 2019, Ankara signed two separate accords with the GNA, one on security and military cooperation and another on maritime boundaries in the eastern Mediterranean.

The maritime deal ends Turkey’s isolation in the East Mediterranean as it ramps up offshore energy exploration that has alarmed Greece and some other neighbors. The military deal would preserve its lone ally in the region, Tripoli.