Egypt appeals to UN over pact amid diplomatic flurry
Egypt has appealed to the United Nations over a maritime zone pact signed by Turkey and Libya, describing it as illegal, as Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias has embarked on a tour of the Middle East with officials reportedly expressing concern about the ramifications of the accord.
In two letters, addressed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the UN Security Council, Egypt decried the two memoranda of understanding signed by the governments of Ankara and Tripoli as “illegal and groundless.”
According to diplomatic sources, Cairo has asked the UN not to register the two MoUs. Meanwhile Athens is proceeding with its efforts to diplomatically isolate Turkey, which backs the Tripoli-based government, by blocking a request by the Libyan administration to NATO for help in boosting its defense capabilities.
Greek officials have noted that Turkey’s attempt to extend its interventions beyond Syria is also provoking concern among the Gulf states that Ankara wants to deploy military forces on Libyan territory so that it can have a say in the country’s future as it does with Syria now.
Dendias met on Tuesday with officials in Saudi Arabia on the first stop of a regional tour that will also take him to the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday and Jordan on Thursday.
In Riyadh, Dendias met King Salman and their talks focused on issues of security in the region and the repercussions of the Turkey-Libya pact.
“We have the common view that these memoranda create problems in the broader region,” Dendias said, adding that the two sides would remain in contact “to coordinate actions from now on” and referring to Saudi Arabia as “a key state in the region.”
