East Libya Parliament Ratifies Maritime Boundary Agreement with Turkey Five Years After Rejecting It

The Libyan House of Representatives, sitting in Tobruk and backing military commander Khalifa Haftar while serving as an alternative to the UN-recognised parliament in Tripoli, has unanimously ratified the memorandum of understanding signed in 2019 between Turkey and Libya's UN-recognised Government of National Accord, concerning the demarcation of maritime boundaries between the two countries in the Mediterranean Sea.

The vote came five years after the same body unanimously rejected the agreement in 2020, when it boycotted Ankara and severed political ties with it. Parliament member Aisha al-Tablaqi told Reuters that specialised committees had provided a thorough and detailed explanation of the agreement's provisions before the vote was held.

The Benghazi-based government aligned with Haftar stated in a release that the ratification reinforces Libya's standing as a political, military, and economic partner for major powers. Parliament member Tariq al-Jaroushy said: "Some countries may be troubled by this agreement, but what matters to us is our national interest."

This development comes in the context of a strategic shift that began last year, built on military communications between Ankara and the Libyan National Army, including an agreement signed in July to develop military facilities and advanced surveillance systems. The Libyan National Army has historically enjoyed support from Egypt and other regional powers, and has been in conflict with Tripoli-aligned forces since the outbreak of the Libyan civil war in 2014.

In December 2019, Haftar-led Libyan National Army forces came close to tightening their siege on Tripoli, threatening the Government of National Accord then headed by Fayez al-Sarraj, before Turkey intervened by sending military advisers and drones, which altered the course of the civil war. Today, nine years into the war, there is talk of Ankara seeking to establish a military presence in areas under Libyan National Army control, securing it entrenched influence in Libya regardless of any future political settlements.

Both Greece and Cyprus had previously rejected the 2019 maritime boundary agreement, describing it as a clear violation of international law that disregards the rights of other Eastern Mediterranean states.