On Monday, the Prime Minister of the Government of National Accord (GNA), Fayez Al-Sarraj, held a meeting with the Turkish and Qatari Ministers of Defence, Hulusi Akar and Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah, to discuss the recent developments in Libya.
The talks tackled the situation in Libya, and the military mobilisation in eastern Sirte, and the Al-Jufra region.
They also discussed areas of military and security cooperation, and security and defence capacity building programs for GNA forces, in addition to enhancing coordination mechanisms, between the defence ministries of the three countries.
The meeting was attended by Turkish Chief of Staff, the ambassadors of the two countries to Libya, and a number of senior Turkish and Qatari officials.
The GNA’s deputy prime minister, Ahmed Maiteeq, the Undersecretary of the Libyan Ministry of Defence, the Chief of General Staff, and the commander of the Western Military Region, also attended the talks.
Turkey and Qatar’s defence ministers, and Germany’s foreign minister visited Tripoli on Monday, amid efforts to secure a ceasefire in the divided country.
Turkey provided crucial military support to the Tripoli-based GNA, to help it stave off a 14-month assault from the Libyan National Army (LNA), led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, earlier this year. Libya has been split since 2014 between factions based in the east and west of the country, and regional powers have aligned themselves with the competing sides.
Turkey signed a military agreement with the GNA late last year, as well as a memorandum of understanding on maritime boundaries that has rattled its neighbours in the eastern Mediterranean.
