Egypt's FM discusses Turkish escalation in Libya with counterparts in Gulf, Cyprus, Greece

MENA , Ahram Online , Friday 3 Jan 2020

Shoukry also spoke to US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien on Thursday about the issue

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry (Reuters)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry (Reuters)

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry conferred over the phone on Thursday with his Saudi, Greek, Cypriot and UAE counterparts about the serious escalation by Turkey after Ankara's parliament approved a motion to send troops to Libya, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed Hafez.

The spokesman said the talks witnessed an agreement in the viewpoints regarding the serious impact of such developments on Arab, regional and Mediterranean security.

Shoukry and US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien also discussed by phone on Thursday bilateral relations and regional developments of common interest especially on the Libyan arena.

In a statement, Hafez said the two sides addressed means of pushing forward strategic cooperation between Egypt and the US in all fields so as to achieve the common interests of the two friendly countries.

“They also exchanged viewpoints on the latest regional conditions, as Shoukry reviewed the Egyptian stance regarding the rapid developments in Libya, expressing Egypt's condemnation of the Turkish parliament's approval to send troops to Libya, the spokesman said.

Shoukry asserted that the decision by the Turkish side is considered a serious escalation threatening security and peace and would further complicate the situation in Libya, added the spokesman.

Egypt strongly condemns a vote by Turkey's parliament vote to allow a troop deployment to Libya, the foreign ministry said in a Thursday statement.

Egypt said the Turkish military intervention in Libya threatens Arab security in general and Egypt's national security in particular, which requires taking all measures to protect Arab interests

"Egypt stresses that the approval to deploy Turkish troops to Libya is considered a blatant violation of international law and Security Council resolutions on Libya, especially resolution 1970 (2011), which imposes a [ban on military cooperation with Libya]," the Egyptian foreign ministry said.

The ministry added that two MoUs recently signed between Turkey and Libya's Prime Minister Fayez Al-Sarraj violated the Libyan Political Agreement of December 2015.

The ministry said that Egypt reasserts the Arab position that rejects any foreign interference in Libya, a position adopted by the League of Arab States' council in its meeting on 31 December.

The foreign ministry added that Turkey is supporting terrorist organisations that are being transported from Syria to Libya.

"This shows the necessity of restoring the nation state in Libya and the institutions in the country," said the statement.

On Thursday, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi held a meeting with the Egyptian National Security Council to discuss the latest developments.

Also on Thursday, Egypt's parliament issued a statement condemning the approval by the Turkish parliament of sending troops to Libya.

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