The French President’s statements have sparked the anger of Turkey, so that a pile of statements came from Turkish politicians and party leaders.
Turkish Parliament Speaker Mustafa Sentop said that French President Emmanuel Macron should consider peace in Libya and give up supporting the option of war and conflict.
His remarks came in a tweet in which he stated that if the French President Emmanuel Macron is interested in peace in Libya, as he claims, he should abandon the country’s descent into chaos by supporting Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar and see that this support will not be useful, adding that Macron must have a correct understanding of Turkey’s stance.
Meanwhile, Turkish Justice and Development Party spokesman Omar Celik said that the increase in the statements of French President Emmanuel Macron targeting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, after the retreat of the Libyan National Army, is not a coincidence.
Celik stressed that Macron’s statements targeting Turkey and its President Erdogan regarding Libya and the Mediterranean are totally unacceptable, pointing out that France supports policies that encourage instability in Libya and the Mediterranean, while Turkey supports the Libyan people at the request of the government, which has international legitimacy.
The spokesman for the Justice and Development Party said that Macron’s call to stop foreign interference in Libya and his description of France as the key to a solution in the country is an irony and an indication of the continuation of the old colonial mentality.
On the other hand, Turkey and the United States stressed the need to reach a political solution to the Libyan crisis and stop military operations, according to the Turkish presidency.
The Presidency stated that its spokesperson Ibrahim Kalın had contacted the US National Security Adviser, Robert O’Brien, noting that the officials stressed the need to find a political solution to the Libyan crisis under the auspices of the United Nations, and to stop what he described as “attacks” of Field Marshal Haftar, who violated all ceasefire agreements including the Berlin Conference conclusions.
Macron’s statements stirred dispute between him and Turkey, which could lead to bad relations between the two countries, as the pace and intensity of such statements may increase in the coming period.
