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.
