The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the UAE Anwar Gargash confirmed that the confrontation between the Turkish Navy and the French frigate Corbett on June 10 revealed clearer intentions for Turkey.
Gargash, in an article on Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper, indicated that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made clear that he had no intention of his country being a bridge between Europe and the Arab world, and instead chose to return Turkey to its imperial past and position it as a competitor and opponent of both, indicating that Libya has become a hub and platform for the expansion of the “new Ottoman” after Erdogan took advantage of the divisions within the Government of National Accord to sign bilateral agreements, which he then used to justify large-scale expropriations of resources in the Mediterranean, providing advanced weapons and transporting thousands of Syrian mercenaries to western Libya, prompting the UAE, France and other allies to address these threats.
Gargash stressed the need for the international community to send a clear and unambiguous message to Turkey that its behavior is unacceptable, and that all possible pressure for the ceasefire should be resorted to allow Libya to return to a political process free of hostilities supported externally, noting that the UAE’s interest by finding a solution to the Libyan crisis that stems from ensuring that foreign forces do not use Libya as a means to destabilize the Arab world.
He also stressed that Libya does not need to end the conflict only, but rather needs responsible leadership and wise management of resources, because of its capabilities to become a regional base for economic growth and prosperity.
