Yusuf Katipoglu, a Turkish politician close to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), released a statement that was broadcast on the ‘Libya Panorama’ television channel.
He claimed that Turkey continues to provide unwavering support to the Government of National Accord (GNA) and that “good news” would be coming from Libya soon.
Turkish support for the GNA, he added, comes within the context of prior military, strategic and intelligence agreements.
According to Katipoglu, the latter were necessarily implemented to face threats posed by the Libyan National Army (LNA) and its supporting states.
He said that the balance of power in Libya has shifted thanks to Turkish support, which allowed the GNA to retake cities it had previously lost and shift from a defensive to an offensive position.
He added that “the GNA is now sieging Tarhuna city and some strategic areas,” anticipating that they will control Bani Walid and some sensitive areas in eastern Libya soon.
Katipoglu stressed the need for high level political and intelligence coordination between Turkey and the GNA during the coming period.
He said that Turkey would not back away from supporting the GNA.
He claimed that joint declaration denouncing Turkish involvement in Libya by Egypt, Cyprus, Greece, UAE and France, required a necessary response and that this would be visible on the ground.
Katipoglu claimed that a battle of strategic interests in the Mediterranean was now in play, referring to the countries that disagreed on the November 2019 maritime agreement signed between Turkey and Libya.
The agreement would allow Turkey to extend its maritime borders and carry out oil and gas exploration in the Mediterranean.
