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Libya’s maritime agreement with Türkiye is not directed against any country, and both nations have the sovereign right to sign such deals, acting Foreign Minister Taher al-Baour said, adding that Tripoli is open to dialogue with states that oppose it.
"This agreement is certainly not directed against any country. This is a maritime cooperation agreement between Libya and Türkiye, and both Libya and Türkiye are sovereign states that have the right to enter into any agreement they wish," Baour told Al Jazeera in an interview aired Tuesday.
"We respect the concerns of the countries that rejected this agreement, but the door is certainly open to dialogue and discussions with everyone to reach the best possible solution," he said.
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Baour said Libya does not want to cause problems or tensions in the region.
"We want our region to be an area of stability, growth and development. That is why we are open to every kind of dialogue and discussion on all the details they want to hear from us, and we are ready to take part in any talks," he said.
The memorandum on delimiting maritime jurisdiction areas was signed in November 2019 by Libya’s then-Government of National Accord. Libya’s eastern-based House of Representatives (HoR) unanimously approved it on Oct. 20, reversing its earlier opposition and repealing 2020 resolutions that had rejected agreements with Türkiye and called for cutting political ties with Ankara.
Ankara welcomed the ratification, saying the memorandum safeguards both countries’ rights under international law and equity.
Greece, Egypt and the Greek Cypriot administration (GCA) rejected it.
Baour said he discussed many issues with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty during his visit to Tripoli.
"Our meeting was not limited to the agreement, but also covered many areas of cooperation between the two countries, including energy, education and health," he said.
Egypt’s embassy in Tripoli was opened during Abdelatty’s visit, a step al-Baour called an important sign of the "deep brotherly relations" between the two countries.
Baour also stressed the importance of reviving the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD), which holds its 22nd ordinary meeting in Tripoli on Nov. 11.
The bloc’s headquarters moved to Chad after 2011 due to Libya’s circumstances but has now returned to Tripoli, where it was founded, he said, as Libya seeks support for its maritime agreement with Türkiye.
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