This archive report was first published on 15 December 2019.
On December 15, 2019, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a closed-door meeting with Libyan leader Fayez Sarraj at Istanbul's historic Dolmabahce Palace, according to the Turkish presidency.
The meeting, not listed on Erdogan's official agenda, came as regional tensions continued to escalate. Just two weeks prior, on November 27, Erdogan and Sarraj had agreed on a deal for security and military cooperation, as well as maritime jurisdiction.
The deal was reached despite opposition from the Arab League, which includes Libya, over Turkey's military actions in Syria. The League had called for an end to cooperation with Turkey in protest of its offensive against Kurdish forces.
Libya has been plagued by chaos since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi. The country is now divided between rival factions, with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE backing Khalifa Haftar, a military strongman in eastern Libya, and Turkey and Qatar supporting the UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) led by Sarraj.
The November deal also expanded Turkey's continental shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean, a move significant given the recent discovery of vast gas reserves in the region. The agreement was strongly condemned by several countries, including Greece and Cyprus.
As tensions continued to rise, Erdogan declared on Tuesday that Turkey was prepared to send troops into Libya if requested. When asked about sending troops during a television interview, he stated, "Turkey alone will decide what initiative to take."
"I have already said that we were ready to provide all sorts of help to Libya," Erdogan added.
