Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan confirmed Wednesday that Turkey has sent shipments of weapons to Libya to support the Government of the National Accord (GNA) in its fighting with the Libyan National Army (LNA).
In an interview with journalists in Ankara, he said Turkey has helped the GNA as the western-based government did not have enough weapons and defence systems, and could not get military support from another country.
Turkey has sent several shipments of weapons to Libya in the past few months, violating the U.N. resolution banning the sale and transfer of arms to Libya.
The most recent shipment was sent on May 18 amid the escalating clashes between the GNA and the LNA.
A shipment of 40 Turkish armored vehicles and other arms reached Tripoli Port, coming from Samsun Port in Turkey.
Claims surfaced about the coalition forces loyal to the GNA received the shipment, carrying dozens of Turkish-made BMC Kirpi armored vehicles.
The LNA openly condemned turkey every time a shipment arrived, but the GNA’s reaction has been silent or lenient. Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu visited Tripoli in December after a Turkish weapon shipment arrived in Libya, announcing that Ankara was investigating how weapons and ammunition travelled from Turkey to Libya.
