Libya differences stall Turkey-Egypt fence-mending

Turkey’s recent moves in Libya, including controversial new deals with Tripoli, have backfired on its fledgling bid to normalize ties with Egypt and gain leverage in energy disputes in the Eastern Mediterranean. 

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said last week that dialogue with Ankara was halted after two rounds of exploratory talks because of “no changes in Turkey’s practices in Libya.” His remarks dampened Ankara’s prospects of a new chapter with Cairo atop its fence-mending with the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Israel. Cairo is irked by Ankara’s signing of three new deals with the Tripoli-based interim government in October, including one on oil and gas exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean. The deals have angered also Libya’s eastern-based parliament, which disputes the legitimacy of Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah and has approved an alternative premier.

Turkey was hoping that the talks with Egypt, chaired by deputy foreign ministers, would lead to a meeting between the two countries’ foreign ministers. Ankara was also changing its tone toward Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, replacing reproval with praise. Turkey’s charge d’affaires in Cairo told Egyptian media recently that Ankara “appreciates the impressive progress on the socio-economic development agenda in Egypt under [Sisi’s] leadership.” 

Ankara also seemed to pay regard to Sisi’s sensitivities by restricting the activities of Muslim Brotherhood exiles in Turkey.