Egypt, Greece reject Turkish-Libyan MoU

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and visiting Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias rejected in a joint press conference in Cairo on Sunday the maritime and energy memoranda of understanding (MoUs) signed by Libya and Turkey, as Shoukry asked the UN Secretary General to take a stance on the “illegitimacy of the Government of National Unity (GNU) in Libya” as it was appointed following a UN-brokered agreement.

Shoukry said the UN shouldn’t be a silent spectator of what it has brokered, referring to the GNU in Libya, which came into office after a UN-led Libyan Political Dialogue Forum in 2021, adding that the international community should fulfill the calls for legitimacy in Libya as per the Security Council’s resolutions. He also said the GNU in Tripoli “isn’t mandated to sign international agreements or MoUs.”

Shoukry also stressed the necessity of holding presidential elections and supporting the efforts of the House of Representatives (HoR), reaffirming the need for mercenaries, foreign fighters and foreign forces to leave Libya as per a specific timeline, adding that he explained to the Greek Foreign Minister the efforts made by Egypt toward Libyan parties and the ongoing consultations on finding a constitutional basis for holding elections.

The Greek Foreign Minister said that the GNU’s mandate had expired and was not a representative of the Libyan people any longer, adding that the GNU couldn’t sign international agreements, saying that Egypt and Greece were working to restore stability to Libya and make the Mediterranean a stable region. He said that the MoU between the GNU and Turkey was illegal and rejected by the international community.