Turkey`s Libya deal also has implications for the prospects of libya`s brutal civil war, where Ankara and its Gulf ally, Qatar, support the Government of the National Agreement (GNA), while the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, France and Russia support rival forces led by Khalifa Haftar, a 75-year-old warlord. With the agreement on Libya, Turkey will have a considerable impact on the energy geopolitics of the eastern Mediterranean. The agreement should limit the unwarranted greed of other coastal states with regard to the resources of the eastern Mediterranean. The Communications Director of the Turkish Presidency, Fahrettin Altun, tweeted on Thursday that the agreement would strengthen military relations with the Tripoli government. On the basis of this agreement, Turkey would be able to send troops to assist Libya in launching joint maritime exploration activities and gaining a position of strength in decisions regarding pipelines crossing these sections of the seabed. ISTANBUL, Nov 28 (Reuters) – Turkey and Libya`s internationally recognized government have signed an agreement on maritime borders in the Mediterranean and an enhanced cooperation agreement on security and military cooperation, as announced by the Turkish government on Thursday. Turkey and the GNA also signed an agreement last year on security cooperation and military cooperation. Earlier this year, Turkey sent troops, Syrian mercenaries and other military backers to help the GNA fend off an attack by Libya`s rival eastern-based National Army and fend off the deluge of the conflict. This week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan`s communications director, Fahrettin Altun, tweeted that the military agreement would “improve the security of the Libyan people.” However, details of the memorandums signed on Wednesday have yet to be published. Under the new agreement, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece and Israel will not be able to carry out exploration or future pipelines without first obtaining Turkey`s permission.
Israel argues that the unilateral measure does not allow Ankara to prevent it from building a gas pipeline linking the Leviathan field to Cyprus and Crete, Greece and Europe. Even the EU, which is often critical of Israel, agrees. The majority of Libyans seem to be in the dark that the current backroom agreements could fail and reignite the conflict. Over the past four years, attempts to find a political solution to the ongoing conflict in Libya have failed at several conferences. However, the recent request for a ceasefire could serve as an incentive for a formal agreement between the Eastern Parliament (HoR) and the UN-backed GNA during the ongoing 5-5 Joint Military Commission talks in the Berlin peace process in Geneva. Finally, the Libyan GNA and the Turkish government, supported by the United Nations, met in Istanbul with strong representation from both sides. They agreed to strengthen cooperation in the areas of security, defence, the economy and investment. Since the UN-backed Libyan government signed a military group agreement with Turkey, the GNA`s operational capacity has grown and Ankara continues to help Libyans train and consult them in the areas of security and the army.