Erdogan: Turkey Will Send Troops to Libya

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that his country intends to send troops to Libya early next month.

This comes within the framework of Turkish support for the government of Fayez al-Sarraj, which sponsors terrorist militias in Tripoli and fights against the Libyan army led by Field Marshal Khalifa Hifter, who is launching a military operation to eliminate terrorist militias in the capital.

A government official in Tripoli confirmed that Al-Sarraj had sent an official request for Turkish military support.

On the other hand, Libyan Army’s Chief-of-Staff, Major-General Faraj al-Mahdawi, has declared the state of high alert and increased the security readiness, in anticipation of the possibility of pushing more Turkish weapons and soldiers to Libya.

Al-Mahdawi said in a statement to Al-Arabiya news channel, that the navy is ready and has enough power to repel any Turkish violation or attacks against the Libyan coast, pointing out that there is strict monitoring and follow-up on all ships coming to the Libyan West.

Earlier, Turkey announced that it could send troops to Libya if the Government of the National Accord (GNA) requests some help. In the meantime, Erdogan said Tuesday pointed to Russian military contractors currently in the war-torn country.

Last month, Libya and its key ally Turkey signed an expanded security and military cooperation agreement, as well as a deal to drill natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean.

Noteworthy, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Erdogan are scheduled to meet on Jan. 8 to discuss several topics; most notably Libya and Syria.