Libya to officially ask Turkey for military aid
TUNIS-Anadolu Agency
Libya's Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha said on Dec. 26 that the U.N.-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) will officially demand military aid from Turkey.
Addressing a news conference in Tripoli, Bashagha said the aid will be used to confront the forces of Khalifa Haftar, a renegade military commander, who is fighting the GNA.
He alleged that Haftar was providing bases and airports to foreign countries.
He reiterated that Turkey, Tunisia, and Algeria will form a joint alliance.
"There will be great cooperation between Turkey, Tunisia, and Algeria, and we will be in one alliance and this will serve our people, our security the stability in the region."
Referring to a meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Tunisian President Kais Saied on Dec. 25, he said: "We welcome any initiative that is inclusive of all Libyans as well as any initiative that must be under the auspices of the United Nations."
"We [Turkey and Libya] must unite efforts to launch a political process for a cease-fire in Libya," he added.
In April, Haftar's forces launched a military campaign to capture Tripoli from the GNA, but have so far failed to progress beyond the city's outskirts.
Bashagha described Haftar's moves as "blatant terrorism".
Earlier on Dec. 26, Erdoğan said a motion to extend military support to Libya's "legitimate government" based in Tripoli will be submitted to Turkish parliament on Jan. 8 or 9.
On Nov. 27, Ankara and Tripoli's GNA signed two separate agreements, one on military cooperation and the other on maritime boundaries of countries in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Since the ouster of late leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, two seats of power have emerged in Libya: one in eastern Libya supported mainly by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, and the GNA in the capital Tripoli, which enjoys UN and international recognition.
