JEDDAH, 16 February, 2021 (TON): Turk Presidential spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin confirmed the decision that its troops will remain in Libya until the Libyan government approves and on the status of the 2019 Ankara-Tripoli bilateral military agreement.

Turkey is preparing to send new Syrian mercenaries to Libya amid international calls for the withdrawal of all foreign fighters in the country said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Sunday.

Seth J. Frantzman, executive director of the Middle East Center for Reporting and Analysis, said, “Turkey violated an arms embargo by shipping drones and weapons to Libya. The question now is whether Turkey’s involvement will cement a political solution or continue to frustrate it.”

The presence of Turkish-affiliated troops in Libya is provoking debate about the interim government's success in the transitional process under the UN.

Experts have warned that foreign intervention risks undermining the work of the UN Support Mission in Libya to end fighting between the country’s warring factions.

However, according to the Libyan-ceasefire agreement of 23 October, 2020 there was the withdrawal of mercenaries and foreign troops within three months.   

However, Turkey claims that its troops are providing military training to units loyal to the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord, and has rejected calls for a withdrawal, despite the expiration of the deadline. About 1,300 Libyan soldiers recently completed Turkish-led training.

“Ankara’s overall goal in the Middle East and North Africa is to partition countries into spheres of influence and then export weapons and mercenaries while dividing the spoils with Russia and largely ignoring local people,” Frantzman said.

“Libya appears to be on the cusp of more peace, with buy-ins from Egypt and other countries,” he added.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last Tuesday that Turkey would withdraw its troops “only if other countries withdraw their troops first.”

Frantzman said, “For Turkey to play a positive role instability, it needs to work with Egypt and other countries, rather than appear at odds with most of the region. Sidelining militias and extremists is a key to that.”

Lately, it happened that last January, U.S. called for an immediate withdrawal of Turkish and Russian troops from Libya that came a month after the Turkish parliament passed a motion authorizing an 18-month extension of troop deployment in Libya.