Turkey stands with Azerbaijan amid clashes with Armenia: Minister

ANKARA

Turkish foreign minister on July 13 strongly condemned a deadly attack by Armenian armed forces on Azerbaijani troops.

Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in a televised interview called on Armenia to "pull its head together" and noted that Turkey stands with Azerbaijan "with all it has".

Çavuşoğlu's remarks came shortly after three Azerbaijani soldiers were killed and four others injured in a border clash with Armenian troops on July 12.

Meanwhile, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement early on July 13 strongly condemning a deadly attack by Armenian armed forces on Azerbaijani troops.

The ministry said the fact that Armenia’s action, which is a new manifestation of its understanding of aggressive nationalism, was repelled by Azerbaijan is a concrete indication that aggression will not be left unanswered.

Ankara also pointed out that such moves -- which Armenia makes to distract the international community’s attention from its years-long illegal occupation of the Azerbaijani region of Upper Karabakh and its surrounding areas and to add new dimensions to the conflict -- are doomed to remain inconclusive.

'Libyan government won’t benefit from ceasefire now'

Çavuşoğlu also said that Libya’s internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) would not benefit from a ceasefire if it were to be declared in the country right now as it wants to first see a road map for the political process and then will agree on a truce.

“If there is a ceasefire right now, it will not work for the Libyan government. Because they have concerns. [Commander] Khalifa Haftar is not sincere. We think he is trying to buy time. It seems to be in preparation for attack again. There is also no political map of Haftar and his supporters,” the minister said.

The coastal city of Sirte and Jufra airbase need to be turned over to the GNA before it agrees to a ceasefire, he noted.

“Sirte and Jufra must be emptied and handed over to the Libyan government. We also conveyed this to the Russian side,” Çavuşoğlu said.

Separately, he said Turkey would start seismic research and drilling operations for natural resources in the part of the eastern Mediterranean covered by a November agreement between Ankara and the GNA.

He added that Turkey was open to sharing with companies from third countries such Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States and Russia.

“Strong rhetoric and maximalist positions from certain EU member countries on issues with high strategic relevance are narrowing the scope for meaningful cooperation with Turkey,” Çavuşoğlu said in his article published in news outlet Politico on July 13 titled “EU-Turkey relations are strained but we have common ground to build on.”

the Libyan issue is “the latest manifestations of an emerging streak of abuse and estrangement of Turkey through unsustainable policies,” he stated.

Leaving Libya at the mercy of a “warlord” Haftar was, and remains, a gross mistake, said Çavuşoğlu. Turkey’s technical and training assistance to the legitimate government in Libya upon its request has changed the balance on the ground and increased the viability of diplomatic efforts like the Berlin Conference, he said. Without our assistance, Tripoli would have fallen to a putschist coalition and there would have been a major humanitarian disaster — with spillover effects felt widely in Europe,” he emphasized.