Turkey maneuvering to spoil Egypt’s ties with Benghazi

Amira al-Sharif

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said several times in the past that his country does not want to come into collision with Egypt in Libya.

Çavuşoğlu also said that Turkey was ready to coordinate with Egypt at the security level in Libya.

Turkey even claims that its policy in Libya goes hand in hand with the Egyptian policy in the country. However, C-130 shipments belie Turkish claims.

The Turkish foreign minister also noted that his country does not want its interests to collide with those of Egypt in the region.

He said Turkey continues to communicate with Egypt at the level of intelligence and at the level of the two countries’ Foreign Ministry.

Turkey wants to draw a roadmap for its relations with Egypt, Çavuşoğlu said.

He said Turkey does not want its interests with Egypt to clash at international forums.

The latest visit by a high-level Egyptian delegation to Tripoli had nothing to do with the visit to the Libyan capital by the Turkish defense minister a short time earlier, he said.

Observers commented on Çavuşoğlu’s comments by saying that Turkey tries to give a false impression to Libyans and Arabs that there is no disagreement between it and Egypt when it comes to Libya.

Turkey, they added, tries to sow the seeds of tensions between Cairo and Benghazi, on one hand, and between Cairo and its allies in the Libyan file, on the other.

This comes as Turkish C-130 military transport aircraft continue to fly to Libya, carrying military supplies to the militias controlling the Libyan capital and most of western Libya.