Türkiye Says it Seeks to ‘Build Good Relations’ with Various Libyan Parties

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the Speaker of the Libyan House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, and the Vice Presidential Council, Abdullah Al-Lafi, in August (Photo: Libyan Parliament)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the Speaker of the Libyan House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, and the Vice Presidential Council, Abdullah Al-Lafi, in August (Photo: Libyan Parliament)
TT
20

Türkiye Says it Seeks to ‘Build Good Relations’ with Various Libyan Parties

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the Speaker of the Libyan House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, and the Vice Presidential Council, Abdullah Al-Lafi, in August (Photo: Libyan Parliament)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the Speaker of the Libyan House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, and the Vice Presidential Council, Abdullah Al-Lafi, in August (Photo: Libyan Parliament)

Türkiye has expressed willingness to build good relations with all Libyan parties, revealing its intention to send a parliamentary delegation to visit Tripoli and the east of the country.

Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu said that his country sought to establish relations with various parties in Libya out of its keenness to achieve security and stability.

In press statements on Wednesday, he said: “Those, who were criticizing Türkiye’s presence in Libya have today praised the effective role it plays in this country, and started saying that Türkiye is a guarantor of security and stability there.”

Cavusoglu added that international relations were constantly changing, noting that Turkish foreign policy “adapts to changing circumstances, in line with its national interests.”

Ankara has been recently seeking to achieve a balance in its policy between western and eastern Libya, but adheres to supporting the Interim Government of National Unity, headed by Abdel Hamid Dbeibeh, against the Fathi Bashagha government.

Türkiye sought to bring the two sides together in a meeting last March, and hosted separate talks with Turkish officials earlier this month.

While Dbeibeh has publicly met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, along with the defense and foreign ministers, and the Turkish intelligence chief, Bashagha and Ankara have not disclosed the level of the meetings recently held in Libya.

During his meeting with Dbeibeh, Erdogan stressed the need to preserve the security and safety of the Libyan capital from any military attempts or attacks. He added that change could only happen through elections.

Dbeibeh, for his part, said that the Turkish side underlined the need to hold elections under the supervision of his government, after which power would be handed over to the elected party.

He also noted that his meetings with Turkish officials focused on political, economic and military affairs.

On the other hand, Bashagha described his meetings with Turkish officials as positive. He pointed to the need to cooperate with all internal political bodies and forces, and with UN Envoy Abdullah Batali, to help the Libyan government carry out its tasks.

The visits of Bashagha and Dbeibeh to Turkey came after days of bloody clashes in Tripoli between forces affiliated with the unity government and others loyal to the Bashagha government, which resulted in the killing of 32 people, including civilians.

Reports said that the Turkish drones supplied to the Dbeibeh government had turned the clashes in the latter’s favor.



Syrian Returns from Lebanon to Start under UN-backed Plan

FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo
TT
20

Syrian Returns from Lebanon to Start under UN-backed Plan

FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo

Thousands of Syrian refugees are set to return from Lebanon this week under the first, UN-backed plan providing financial incentives, after Syria's new rulers said all citizens were welcome home despite deep war damage and security concerns.

Returning Syrians will be provided with $100 each in Lebanon and $400 per family upon arrival in Syria, Lebanese Social Affairs Minister Haneen Sayed said. Transport is also covered and fees have been waived by border authorities, she said.

"I think it's a good and important start. We have discussed and are coordinating this with our Syrian counterparts and I think the numbers will increase in the coming weeks," Sayed told Reuters. A Syrian interior ministry spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

More than 6 million Syrians fled as refugees after conflict broke out in Syria in 2011, with most heading to Türkiye, Lebanon and Jordan. Lebanon has the highest concentration of refugees per capita in the world, hosting about 1.5 million Syrians among a population of about 4 million Lebanese.

Some 11,000 have registered to return from Lebanon in the first week, and the government targets between 200,000 and 400,000 returns this year under the plan, Sayed said.

The Lebanese government is focused on informal tented settlements in the country, where some 200,000 refugees live, she added, and may provide Syrian breadwinners who stay in Lebanon with work permits for sectors such as agriculture and construction if their families return to Syria.

UN agencies previously viewed Syria as unsafe for large-scale returns due to uncertainty over security and persecution by the government of Bashar al-Assad, who was toppled in December.

That has changed.

Since taking over, the new Syrian government has said all Syrians are welcome home. A UN survey from earlier this year showed nearly 30% of refugees living in Middle Eastern countries wanted to go back, up from 2% when Assad was in power.

"While the situation in Syria continues to rapidly evolve, (UN refugee agency) UNHCR considers the current context a positive opportunity for larger numbers of Syrian refugees to return home, or to begin considering return in a realistic and durable way," Ivo Freijsen, UNHCR Representative in Lebanon, told Reuters.

As of the end of June 2025, UNHCR estimated that over 628,000 Syrians had crossed back to Syria via neighboring countries since 8 December 2024, including 191,000 via Lebanon.