GNA sending even more money to Turkey

Sara Rashad

New details are emerging about financial dealings between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA).

The new details belie claims by Erdoğan that he is interfering in Libya with the aim of “backing the oppressed.” They also give insights into Erdoğan’s ambitions in the North African state.

The GNA has so far deposited $12 billion at the Central Bank of Turkey, according to the news site, Libya Review. The money, it said, is classified as an underpayment for military support in Libya.

Earlier this year, analysts set off warnings that Turkey would not be able to cover the costs of its military interference in Libya.

However, Erdoğan overlooked all these warnings as well as deteriorating economic conditions in his country and moved ahead with his plan.

Money for war

According to the Libya Review, the Turkish president turned his country’s army into a bunch of mercenaries.

The Turkish newspaper, Ahval, revealed that the GNA had sent the aforementioned funds to the Central Bank of Turkey at the request of the Turkish government.

It said Turkey demanded $16 billion in return for its military support of the GNA. The money would also have covered the losses Turkish companies sustained in Libya since 2011, the newspaper said.

This came at a time the Turkish president had been trying to assure Turkish citizens about the economy of their country at a time Turkey keeps battling the coronavirus.

Erdoğan told the Turkish news channel, TRT, that international reserves at the central bank had reached $93 billion.

He did not refer, however, to the role the GNA played in propping up these international reserves.