Turkey's Libya Policy: Achievements and Challenges

Abstract

Libya has been witnessing a long and destructive civil war since the fall of Qaddafi in 2011. While countries like the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and France have an extremely damaging role in Libya, Turkey and Qatar has been trying to focus on ending the conflict and establishing a stable democratic country. Hafter's invasion attempt, supported by the UAE and Egypt, failed as a result of Turkey's intervention. In this regard, it would be correct to say that the peace process and political dialogue has only become possible with Turkey's involvement in the Libyan equation. In Libya, where tribal ties are already effective, and centralization is weak, long-term conflicts have deeply shaken social cohesion. Furthermore, international actors have remained uninterested in Libya or preferred to fuel the problem rather than solve it. All of these factors, made it difficult for Turkey to implement its plans in Libya. Nevertheless, both Libya and Turkey have achieved major gains since the beginning of the year. In this context, this study aims to underscore the challenges of aforementioned process and consequently acquisitions of both sides.