The showdown engaged by French President Emmanuel Macron with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the Libyan issue received minimal support on Thursday evening from its European partners. Berlin and Rome have joined Paris to call, in a statement, for the end of all foreign interference in Libya, alluding in particular to the Turkish military intervention alongside the GNA government of Fayez el-Sarraj. And the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, called on Turkey to stop its gas exploration drilling “ illegal »Off Cyprus and Libya
Support in the form of communiqués that may be insufficient to destabilize France’s policy in Libya, in the face of the realities of the military field and diplomatic imbroglios. Turkey prides itself on the fact that the GNA is the only legitimate executive recognized by the United Nations and has helped it to repress recently the “putschist” Khalifa Haftar, whom she accuses France of supporting behind the scenes. Support recognized by many specialists in the conflict, but which Paris claims to have limited to a helping hand two years ago against jihadist groups.
The situation is all the more confused as Haftar is also supported, diplomatically, by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Russian mercenaries. All these countries claim to help it against a GNA infiltrated by the jihadists, but also have oil or security interests in mind in the case of Egypt, which last Saturday threatened to intervene militarily.
An unprecedented incident within NATO
The standoff between Paris and Ankara resulted, on June 10, in an unprecedented incident between two NATO member countries, when the French frigate Courbet was “hooked” by a Turkish radar firing off the coast of Libya. Ankara is accused of opposing checks by Atlantic Alliance ships, including the frigate Courbet, of cargo ships suspected in very detailed circumstances of violating the United Nations arms embargo on Libya.
NATO brain death
« Turkey plays dangerous game in Libya and violates all non-interference pledges made at Berlin conference “In January, launched last Monday Emmanuel Macron, who estimated that the rather soft reaction of NATO was” the most beautiful of demonstrations “Of his polemical remarks last year, in which he said he feared that the Atlantic Alliance was” brain dead ” He also ruled ” intolerable “That such a confrontation between two NATO members gave rise to” so little denunciations “. While the United States pretends not to be interested in the Libyan file, the Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, had indeed just mentioned a simple ” disagreement between allies “Before resolving to accept the opening of an investigation into” aggressiveness From Turkey at the request of eight European countries.
The Elysée, which believes that much more is at stake ” than a simple Franco-Turkish quarrel “But a real” strategic challenge in Libya and the eastern Mediterranean due to excesses ” by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, also denounces the gas agreement concluded between Ankara and the GNA which threatens the interests of “ our own allies and Union members that are Cyprus and Greece ” in Mediterranean. Paris therefore asked, on Wednesday, the European Union to look into “ without taboo On his relationship with Turkey.
A relationship polluted by e delicate refugee file Syrian: Ankara regularly claims to be ready to “drop” on Greece cohorts of refugees it has committed to host against substantial financial aid, or if negotiations for membership of the Union are not restarted. The latter have been at a standstill for almost a decade, because Europe is worried about the deterioration of the rule of law under the regime of Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The latter modified the Constitution two years ago to concentrate almost all of the powers. Ankara, who also accused Paris of ” play a dangerous game “In Libya and to have” blackouts “ on the crimes committed by Khalifa Haftar, arrested on Sunday four Turks suspected of spying on behalf of France.
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