The head of Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT), Ibrahim Kalin, met with Libya’s acting defence minister, Abdussalam Zubi, in Istanbul, as Ankara and Tripoli seek to deepen cooperation and support efforts to unify Libya’s divided institutions.
The Saturday meeting came as negotiations aimed at bringing Libya’s military and political institutions together have gained momentum, according to Turkish security sources.
Kalin and Zubi discussed developments in Libya and the wider region, steps to maintain Türkiye-Libya cooperation, and ongoing efforts to achieve political and military unity and preserve stability in the North African country.
Zubi thanked Türkiye for its efforts to advance unity in Libya, while Kalin reiterated Ankara’s determination to continue supporting Libya’s security and stability.
A relationship built around security, trade and the Mediterranean
Türkiye’s engagement with Libya has expanded considerably over the past several years, encompassing security, energy, trade and maritime cooperation.
A landmark step came in November 2019, when Türkiye and Libya’s then Government of National Accord signed a memorandum on the delimitation of maritime jurisdiction areas in the Mediterranean.
The agreement, registered with the United Nations, defines a maritime boundary between the two countries’ continental shelf and exclusive economic zone areas.
The accord has remained a central element of Türkiye-Libya relations and the wider geopolitical debate over maritime boundaries in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Ankara maintains that the agreement protects the maritime rights of both Türkiye and Libya and was concluded in accordance with international law.
The maritime understanding was followed in October 2022 by a separate memorandum on cooperation in hydrocarbons, covering scientific, technical, technological, legal, administrative and commercial cooperation on land and at sea.
The agreements have helped broaden the relationship beyond security cooperation, placing energy and the Mediterranean at the heart of Ankara-Tripoli ties.
Ankara backs efforts to consolidate Libya’s institutions
Türkiye has also increasingly framed its engagement around Libya’s territorial integrity, political unity and institutional consolidation.
In August, Kalin said Türkiye would continue supporting efforts to bring Libya’s eastern and western administrations together under a single Libyan framework, while Turkish and Libyan officials discussed measures to strengthen security and stability.
International and regional efforts have sought to establish unified institutions and pave the way for lasting political stability.
Against that backdrop, Ankara’s contacts with figures from different Libyan institutions have become an important component of its engagement with the country.
The latest Kalin-Zubi meeting underscores the breadth of that engagement, linking security cooperation with the broader effort to help Libya achieve political and military unity.
