Turkey could send troops to Libya if requested – Erdogan
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that Turkey could deploy troops in Libya, if the UN-backed government in Tripoli were to request such support.
His comment came weeks after Turkey signed security and military cooperation agreements, as well as a controversial maritime border agreement, with Libya’s Tripoli-based government. The government, led by Fayez Sarraj, controls parts of the country’s west.
“If Libya were to make a request, we would send a sufficient number of troops,” AP quoted Erdogan as saying. “After the signing of the security agreement, there is no hurdle,” he told university students during a town hall meeting.
The deals with Turkey outraged members of the Libyan parliament, which is based in the east and aligned with the self-styled Libyan National Army, led by Gen. Khalifa Haftar. “Sarraj is the one who is recognized, and he is the one we considered as our interlocutor,” Erdogan said.
