Saddam Haftar's visit to Ankara marks shift in Turkey's Libya policy
ISTANBUL — In a visit carrying symbolic weight, Maj. Gen. Saddam Haftar, commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Ground Forces, met with senior Turkish officials in Ankara on April 4, 2025 — the anniversary of Libya's second civil war that began in 2018.
Haftar, son of eastern Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar, was hosted by Turkish Land Forces commander Gen. Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu. Defence Minister Yaşar Güler also held talks with him. The visit marks a rare instance of direct contact between the Turkish Armed Forces and the LNA, which were on opposing sides during Libya's most recent civil conflict.
The meeting comes shortly after reports that U.S. oil giant Chevron has expressed interest in exploring a 47,000 km² area south of Crete. The designated area overlaps with Libya's claimed Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and aligns with Greece's position based on the equidistance principle, as seen in the so-called Seville Map.
Greek officials have called this development a 'game changer' and a sign of U.S. support for their maritime claims.
According to Serhat Süha Çubukçuoğlu, a senior fellow at the Abu Dhabi-based TRENDS Research and Advisory consultancy, the timing of Haftar's visit is no coincidence.
'It appears to be Ankara's response to Greece's moves in the Eastern Mediterranean,' he said. The visit signals a growing dialogue between Turkey and the Benghazi-based government, which had previously rejected a 2019 maritime memorandum of understanding signed between Ankara and the Tripoli government.
Çubukçuoğlu noted that Haftar agreed in principle to procure Turkish-made armed unmanned aerial vehicles and receive training and equipment for LNA forces. If this cooperation progresses, it could revive the stalled maritime deal and pave the way for Turkish hydrocarbon activity in Libyan waters—similar to Turkey's recent moves in Somalia.
Turkish Ministry of Defence sources described the visit as a step toward reconciliation and national unity in Libya.
During the Second Libyan Civil War, Turkey provided military support to the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli. This included the deployment of drones and personnel, helping the GNA repel Haftar's forces and recapture strategic sites such as the al-Watiya airbase in 2020. The latest engagement with the LNA appears to indicate a recalibration of Ankara's policy to include outreach to eastern Libyan actors.
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