According to the two heads of state, they talked about possible steps to create a ceasefire in Libya: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan traveled to Tunisia for a surprising visit to his counterpart Kais Saied. Erdogan said at a joint press conference that he believed that Tunisia could make "valuable and constructive" contributions to create stability in the civil war-torn Libya.
The Turkish president added that an armistice should be established as soon as possible. It was only on Sunday that Erdogan declared his willingness to give the Libyan government under Fayez Sarraj even more military support than before. Turkey will examine the possibilities of ground forces, air force and navy, it said.
In Libya, the civil war threatens to become a proxy war: the UN-recognized government under Sarray still dominates the capital Tripoli, but hardly any areas in the country. Sarray is supported by Italy, Qatar - and Turkey. His opponent is the so-called Libyan Arab Army (LNA) of the warlord Khalifa Haftar, who controls the east of Libya and is supported by Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, among others. Haftar recently called for another trip to the capital, Tripoli.
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With Turkey's involvement, the fear of a proxy war in Libya is growing, experts are already warning of a second Syria.
Erdogan is accompanied by his foreign and defense ministers and his secret service chief on his surprise visit to Tunisia. The visit is the first of a head of state in Tunisia since the election of President Kais Saied in the autumn.
Turkey has recently stepped up its efforts to conclude agreements with nations on the Mediterranean, including because of conflicts over resources. For example, the government in Ankara has been arguing with Greece over years about raw materials off the coast of the divided island of Cyprus and gas deposits off Crete. Egypt also protested sharply against a Turkish-Libyan agreement at the end of November.
