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Turkey pursues Libya campaign despite growing financial woes

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is pressing ahead with his military venture in Libya even as the coronavirus pandemic is putting further strain on Ankara’s cash-strapped coffers.
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As the coronavirus crisis rages across the world, those who hoped that guns might now go silent in theaters of war are finding their desires dashed. In Turkey, where the pandemic is bruising an already crisis-hit economy, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has showed no sign of backing down from his cross-border military ventures. He seems unperturbed by budget constraints as he presses ahead with his intervention in Libya — and in Syria, as a matter of fact. Never mind that he has had to call for donations to help the needy in the coronavirus pandemic, stunning millions who expected support from the state but were effectively told that Ankara’s coffers are empty in the fight against COVID-19.

Turkey’s role in the Libyan conflict has once again come to the fore amid a renewed escalation around Tripoli since March 25. 

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