US President Donald Trump warned his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday against “foreign interference” in Libya, when the Turkish parliament authorized the latter to deploy the army to this war-torn country.
“The two leaders discussed bilateral and regional issues. President Trump said foreign interference is making the situation in Libya more difficult,” the White House said in a brief report of the call.
The sound of this call was slightly different from Ankara’s side. The Turkish president especially stressed the importance of diplomacy and the intensification of cooperation between the United States and his country.
Libya has become the scene of a power struggle between two camps: on the one hand, Turkey and Qatar, which support the Government of National Unity (GNA), and on the other, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, which are supporting the forces of the strong man from eastern Libya, Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who is trying to take Tripoli.
After the green light from Turkish deputies, it is up to Recep Tayyip Erdogan to decide whether to send troops to this country separated from Turkey by the Mediterranean, or whether military support will take another form.
Washington called in November on Marshal Khalifa Haftar to end its offensive to seize Tripoli, even if the American president had given the impression of supporting him in the past.
The United States also regularly accuses Russia of seeking to exploit the conflict “despite the will of the Libyan people”. Even if Moscow denies, the UN envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salamé, and President Erdogan claim that Russian mercenaries are engaged alongside the forces of Marshal Haftar.
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