Friday June 19, 2020
'Someone who claims to have seized the power, instead of cease-fire, should not have a
seat at the table,' says top diplomat
ANKARA
Warlord Khalifa Haftar no longer has legitimacy in Libya and should not have a seat at the table, Turkey’s foreign minister said on Thursday.
Speaking in a televised live interview on CNN Turk, Mevlut Cavusoglu said: "Haftar no longer has any validity. He had no legitimacy anyway.”
“A coup plotter like Haftar, someone who claims to have seized the power, instead of a cease-fire, should not have a seat at the table. He should not be dealt with any longer,” he added.He emphasized that there is still no cease-fire in Libya even after the efforts carried out in Moscow and Berlin because of Haftar's attitude.
Meanwhile, Cavusoglu said the security cooperation between Turkey and Libya's government may be expanded in the upcoming period.
Last November, Turkey and Libya signed landmark pacts on military cooperation as well as boundaries in the Mediterranean.
Under the deal, Turkey has sent advisors to help the Libyan Army defeat the militias of warlord Khalifa Haftar.
The Libyan Army recently inflicted heavy blows on Haftar and liberated Tripoli and Tarhuna, in addition to other strategic locations, including Al-Watiya airbase, from his militias.
The internationally recognized government has been under attack by Haftar's forces since April 2019, with more than 1,000 killed in the violence.