Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Thursday abruptly cancelled his scheduled meeting with the President of the Tripoli-based government, Mohamed Younes Menfi, after his Government of National Unity (GNU) counterpart Najla Mangoush arrived at the airport to greet him.
Dendias accused Mangoush of trying “to force her presence at the airport so that I would have to meet with her.” The Greek Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Mangoush had failed to respect the agreement between Greece and Libya that Dendias would not meet with his counterpart.
“As a result, I cut short my visit to Tripoli and departed for Benghazi, where the schedule was followed, as planned,” Dendias said.
In Benghazi, Dendias met with warlord and leader of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar, with whom he discussed the presence of Turkish troops in Libya and Ankara’s support for the Tripoli-based government.
The Foreign Minister of the Libyan transitional Government tried to force her presence at the airport so that I would have to meet with her. As a result, I cut short my visit to Tripoli and departed for Benghazi, where I outlined 🇬🇷 positions (statement in Benghazi, 🇱🇾). pic.twitter.com/HvXWb7NsBK
— Nikos Dendias (@NikosDendias) November 17, 2022
Dendias and Haftar criticised the recent Turkey-Libya energy deal, with Dendias saying the agreement violates international law. In October, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu inked an MoU in energy cooperation with his GNU counterpart Najla Mangoush in Tripoli, allowing Ankara to explore hydrocarbon and natural gas deposits between the two countries. Athens and Cairo immediately condemned the MoU, saying it would violate their Exclusive Economic Zones and escalate regional tensions.
Dendias claimed that the Tripoli-based GNU “does not have any competence to review or implement previous agreements regarding the future of Libya’s external relations,” referring to the end of the GNU’s term in December 2021. He also said Turkey’s actions “would further destabilise the Mediterranean region” and establish a “regional hegemony.”
In this respect, Greece will only recognise the Libyan government that emerges as a result of successful elections, Dendias emphasised. Saying that the “sole obligation” of the Libyan transitional government is to lead the country to elections as soon as possible, Dendias noted that the government is making no efforts in this regard.
The Libyan Foreign Ministry has condemned Dendias’ actions, saying his behaviour was “crude” and calling his statements about Libya’s sovereignty “unbalanced.” According to the latest reports, the Libyan Foreign Ministry recalled its ambassador to Athens and summoned Greece’s envoy to protest Dendias’ move.
Concluding his visit to Eastern Libya, FM @NikosDendias met w/ Aguila Saleh Issa, Speaker of the Libyan House of Representatives & representative of the town of Al Qubbah, to whom he expressed 🇬🇷’s satisfaction for condemning Turkey-Libya memoranda (2019, 2022) pic.twitter.com/KHWOgiEh4I
— Υπουργείο Εξωτερικών (@GreeceMFA) November 17, 2022
Dendias also met with leaders of the rival Tobruk-based government, including Tobruk’s parliamentary speaker Aguila Saleh, on Friday.
The Tripoli and Tobruk governments have claimed legitimacy after the GNU failed to hold elections last December. Moreover, GNU Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah has refused to step down, extending his mandate.
The Tobruk-based government, led by the House of Representatives (HoR), has condemned Dbeibah’s refusal to cede power and selected Fathi Bashagha as the country’s Prime Minister (PM), later voting to give confidence to Bashaga’s government.
Libyan foreign ministry recalls its ambassador from Athens and summons his Greek counterpart in Tripoli pic.twitter.com/KKFyTuTIBz
— TRT World Now (@TRTWorldNow) November 18, 2022
Dbeibah was appointed as interim PM as part of a United Nations-led effort in February 2021, replacing the internationally recognised Government of National Accord and the rival LNA with the GNU to oversee efforts to hold elections in December of the same year. The agreement officially ended the second Libyan civil war.
Following the death of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya descended into a state of anarchy, with rival armed factions violently competing for control of the country. The violence initially led to an eight-month-long war in 2011 between Gaddafi loyalists and rebel groups that resulted in a comprehensive victory for anti-Gaddafi forces. Three years later, rivalries among the rebels led to a second civil war fought over six years. Both wars have killed and displaced thousands.