Parliamentary panel approves Turkey-Libya security deal

ANKARA

Parliament’s foreign relations commission has approved a comprehensive security and defense cooperation memorandum of understanding between Turkey and Libya with plans to have it legislated by the General Assembly on Dec.18.

The MoU on defense and security was signed on Nov. 27 between the senior government officials from two countries along with another deal on the delimitation of the maritime jurisdiction areas in the Mediterranean.

The agreement pledges a legal basis for substantial cooperation in the field of defense and security including establishing defense offices in each other’s countries, training, allocating of air, ground and naval vehicles, holding joint exercises and intelligence.

The move has come as the Tobruk-based General Khalifa Hafter forces have intensified attacks against the United Nations-backed government in Tripoli under the leadership of Prime Minister Mustafa Fayez al-Sarraj.

“Demands for increasing our security and military cooperation came from Libya. We already had some works on it, and we just accelerated them,” Deputy Foreign Minister Faruk Kaymakçı said in his introduction of the content of the deal to the panel.

This MoU will help Turkey to protect its rights in the eastern Mediterranean and in north Africa along with contributing to the stability of Libya, the deputy minister stressed, also informing that Turkey signed similar agreements on security with 77 countries.