Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stated he intends on visiting Libya as part of a possible North Africa tour according to his statement in a press conference Thursday evening.
The statement came following Erdogan’s Gulf tour which included Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. In the press conference held on the presidential plane right after landing from his visit to the Gulf region, Erdogan told reporters that his hosts were all pleased with the recent improvement in Turkish Egyptian diplomatic relations, and referenced the Turkish-Libyan cooperation agreement over hydrocarbons which was signed last year, as an example that may encourage a similar approach regarding Turkish Egyptian cooperation.
Erdogan further mentioned Libya specifically as one of the countries he hopes to visit in the near future, elaborating thereafter that along with Libya, perhaps a North Africa tour can be arranged, in a way comparable to this week’s Gulf tour. Erdogan stressed that such visits are necessary to move forward.
A visit by Erdogan to Libya would be the first in roughly a decade. Libyan Turkish relations have been very positive in recent years after Turkey’s support of the government in 2020. Libyan prime minister Dbeiba has made a number of visits to Ankara since his appointment in 2021, and also hosted Turkish cabinet ministers and top Turkish officials in Tripoli on several occasions, during his two-year tenure so far.
Source: Anadolu Agency
