Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged additional support to Libya’s internationally recognized government against Haftar "who caused destruction in infrastructure and damaged the social fabric", adding that the conflict there can only be resolved politically under the auspices of the United Nations.
In a news conference with Head of the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez al-Sarraj in Ankara, they stressed that the Libyan government will not allow negotiations in the next stages with Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Haftar.
Erdogan stressed that Turkey’s priority in Libya is to contribute to the North African country’s political unity and stability through continued support to the Tripoli government. He added that it is not possible that one person (Haftar) who poses a threat to Libya's future to sit on the dialogue table for political solutions.
The president also welcomed the recent military success of the GNA forces.
Erdogan said that during the meeting they discussed ways to lift embargos on Libya. “We are on the same page on the issue of the continuation of oil exports of Libya," he stated, as he called on international actors to make efforts to prevent the “illegal” oil export of Haftar.
He added that Turkey also aims to cooperate with Libya to have the right to carry out oil exploration activities in the eastern Mediterranean region.
For his part, Sarraj said “We will continue our struggle until we eliminate the enemy in Libya… We completely liberated Tripoli and its surroundings. Actually, this success is the victory of all of us.”
Sarraj also said that Libya looks forward to the return of Turkish firms to work in infrastructure and reconstruction projects in Libya, thanking Ankara for siding with legitimacy in Libya.
Erdogan and Sarraj held extensive talks at the presidential palace in Ankara on Thursday, in which they assessed developments in Libya.