Eastern Libya welcomes Turkey delegation to Benghazi port
Turkey has moved to augment its relations with the eastern Libya administration as the Turkish warship TGC Kinaliada docked at Benghazi port, according to the Arab Weekly plus agencies on August 25th.
It is understood that the talks between Libyan and Turkish officials focused on “military and naval cooperation, as well as the exchange of expertise”.
General Saddam Khalifa Haftar, Khalifa Haftar’s son and deputy commander-in-chief of the Libyan National Army (LNA), received the Turkish vessel and the delegation on board.
Among those included in the delegation were Turkish Ambassador to Libya Guven Begec and the Turkish Consul General in Benghazi Serkan Keramanlioglu.
Turkey’s visit to Benghazi, alongside the warm reception by Saddam Haftar, has been perceived as a move by Ankara to enhance ties with Libya’s eastern administration whilst maintaining relations with the UN-backed, Tripoli-based Government of National Unity.
For Libya’s east, the recent appointment of Saddam Haftar to deputy commander-in-chief has been presented as part of a strategy to enhance the capabilities of its forces, and building further ties with Turkey seems to be another development in the LNA strategy to strengthen.
At Haftar’s swearing-in ceremony for deputy commander-in-chief, Saddam Haftar vowed to devote his “utmost efforts within the military’s frameworks and laws”, in addition to portraying the army as a “force for peace, combating terrorism and extremism”.
He continued to preach the merits of the LNA, noting areas where the army had control were witnessing “unprecedented levels of investment and development”.
Furthermore, the visit by the Turkish delegation strengthens an already existing relationship, with the eastern-backed Libyan Development and Reconstruction Fund signing contracts with a Turkish company to invest in eight airports across the region.
General Khalifa Haftar, Saddam Haftar’s father, has also secured ties with other nations in the Mediterranean to legitimise the LNA and their control of the region, recently securing a deal with Greece dealing with irregular migration.
The Arab Weekly plus agencies, Maghrebi.org
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