The Defence Minister of Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA), Salah Al-Din Al-Namroush stated that they are seeking new recruits to join their armed forces. He explained that most of the GNA’s forces have reached retirement age.
“The GNA needs soldiers of young age, and therefore a training centre was established in Tripoli in cooperation with our Turkish ally to train these new elements,” Al-Nimroush said in media statements
He explained that the GNA seeks to benefit from Turkey’s military expertise, especially as it is a member of NATO. He confirmed that Turkish experts and officers were brought in, to train GNA forces on attack and incursion activities.
“Training abroad is based on two things: The first is to determine the number of trainees and is done according to the capacity of the targeted training centre. The second is the extent of the ability of the friendly country to absorb the largest number of trainees,” Al- Nimroush noted.
He pointed out that an admission committee was formed to select recruits for training abroad, with the soldiers undertaking several tests, including a personal interview, and medical examination.
On Saturday, the Turkish Presidency sent a motion to Parliament with a request to extend the deployment of Turkish troops in Libya for an additional 18 months. The motion said, “The risks and threats from Libya to Turkey and the whole region are severe. If the Libyan National Army (LNA) attacks, Turkey’s interests both in the Mediterranean basin and North Africa will be adversely affected.”
In 2019, Turkey signed a security and military agreement with the GNA, including a memorandum of understanding on maritime borders.