After Egypt and Israel objected.. What did Türkiye say about the Eastern Libyan Parliament’s ratification of the memorandum of understanding?

On Wednesday, Turkey described the memorandum of understanding ratified by the Libyan House of Representatives held in the east of the country on Tuesday, which was signed in 2019 between the Government of National Accord and Ankara regarding the maritime borders, as “completely legitimate from both a legal and political standpoint.” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in statements to the Turkish Anadolu News Agency on Wednesday: “What has been achieved represents a diplomatic success within the framework of the foreign policy pursued by Turkey under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.” He added that the memorandum “was formulated in accordance with the basic principles of Turkish foreign policy, supports peace and stability, and is based on the principle of mutual benefit.”

He stated: "The confidence of our Libyan brothers in Turkey, and the stability that will come in the eastern Mediterranean, are extremely important." In response to the criticism directed by Egypt and Israel of the memorandum, Fidan said: “We know the reasons for these countries’ objection. Some of them object because they believe they should object, while other countries face real strategic problems related to this file, but this is a completely legitimate agreement from both a legal and political standpoint, and there is no need to discuss that.”

He added that the memorandum signed in 2019 “was already in effect, according to the Turkish legal interpretation, according to the technical formula in which it was concluded.” He continued: “What happened in the Libyan House of Representatives was essentially an acceptance procedure, not a ratification procedure, according to the opinion of our legal experts.

We consider the agreement to be in force since 2019.” The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement in which it declared its categorical refusal to ratify the memorandum, and reaffirmed that “the memorandum is absolutely invalid and has no legal effect, and its ratification by the Libyan House of Representatives does not have any legal effects for Egypt.”

The statement continued that Egypt confirms that “the aforementioned memorandum of understanding violates the principles of the international law of the sea, and the provisions of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea regarding the designation of the exclusive zone and the continental shelf, which relies on the principles of justice and equity, as the memorandum entails a clear violation of Egypt’s sovereign rights in its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.” Egypt had previously objected to the signing of the memorandum of understanding, indicating in the statement that it “reserves its right to protect its rights guaranteed by international law and to confront any attempt to violate them.”

Israel also issued a statement on Wednesday, declaring its condemnation of the ratification decision. The ministry said in a brief statement on its account on the

The statement continued: “What is regrettable is that we once again see Türkiye seeking to destabilize the eastern Mediterranean region.” It is noteworthy that in 2019, the former “National Accord” government in Tripoli signed a memorandum of understanding with Türkiye, which sparked official protests from Egypt and Greece and reached the corridors of the United Nations through protest notes.

The Libyan House of Representatives refused to adopt the memorandum over the years when Aguila Saleh was at the head of the legislative authority, before it was approved in a session on Tuesday. The Council's decision comes within a remarkable rapprochement between Türkiye and the authorities in eastern Libya, accompanied by the conclusion of many cooperation agreements.

It is noteworthy that during the campaign of eastern Libyan forces against Tripoli in 2019, the “Government of National Accord” received political and military support from Ankara.