This is the first such announcement since Ankara sent troops to back the Government of National Accord in Tripoli.

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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan himself announced the death of his soldiers in Libya, adding that there were Syrian National Army troops alongside them reinforcing a military co-operation  treaty signed between Turkey and Libya.

Last months Berlin summit that agreed hostilities should stop on Libya so that the political peace process  could take place has evidently broken down.

Rebel leader Khalifa Haftar, backed by Russia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, claims to have killed at least 16 Turkish troops as he defends advances his forces have made in capturing Tripoli.

The post Turkey says two of its soldiers have been killed in Libya appeared first on Jean-Jacques Cornish.

He was speaking on the eve of an African summit in Brazzaville on its oil-rich Mediterranean member.

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Emmanuel Macron says Turkish warships carrying Syrian mercenaries have been seen entering Libyan waters.

The French President calls this a clear violation of the Berlin agreement on Libya signed earlier this month urging non-interference in the country that has been as war since 2011.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has not responded to the French charge.

He has deployed military advisors in Tripoli as part of his support for the Government of National Accord.

In Algeria earlier this week he accused rebel leader Khalifa Haftar of breaking the Berlin Accord

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He’s speaking in Algiers where he’s visiting with a strong business delegation.

Turkey’s taken sides in Libya, physically supporting the United-Nations-backed Government of National Accord.

So President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s exchanges on Libya with his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tabboune, who strongly rejects any foreign interference in their eastern neighbour with whom they share a 1 000km border, will have been interesting.

Erdogan accuses Libyan rebel leader Khalifa Haftar of breaking the truce signed in Berlin earlier this month.

The United Nations fears both sides in the intractable conflict have been acquiring heavy weapons and armoured vehicles despite the agreement in Berlin to enforce the 2011 arms embargo on Libya. 

The post Turkey says there’s no military solution in Libya appeared first on Jean-Jacques Cornish.

This message on their website hours after leader Khalifa Haftar left Moscow without signing a ceasefire.

Libyan government leader Fayez Al Sarraj must wonder how he was played by his backer, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin who supports Khalifa  Haftar’s rebels.

They were called to Moscow to ink a ceasefire proposed last week by Erdogan and Putin.

It was clear from the start Putin could not deliver Haftar who left, saying he had to consider a few details.

The bellicose message that followed shows he intended duping the Government of National Accord while pursuing his plan to seize the capital Tripoli.

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Meeting in Istanbul, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for ceasefire to come into effect at midnight on Sunday.

The Turkish and Russian presidents were attending  the inauguration of the Turkestream pipeline carrying Russian gas through Turkey to Europe.

The 920 km pipeline that crosses the Black Sea is part of Russia’s efforts to avoid using  Ukraine to export its gas.

Turkey and Russia support opposite sides in the Libya conflict.

Vladimir Putin backs the rebel leader Khalifa Haftar whose forces have taken the strategic coastal town of Sirte and have set their sights on Tripoli.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan is deploying troops to support the United-Nations-backed Government of National Accord in the capital. 

The post Turkey and Russia call for ceasefire in Libya appeared first on Jean-Jacques Cornish.

At an emergency session in Ankara, MPs gave President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the authority to determine over the next year how and when the deployment will happen.

The move asserting Turkey’s increasingly assertive position in the Mediterranean causes concern both in Washington and the Arab world.

The fear is that Libya, deeply destabilized since the fall of Muammar Gadaffi nine years ago,  could become a stage for an increasing proxy war in the region.

In a phone call with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his US counterpart President Donald Trump has warned of  foreign interference in Libya.

Egypt, which backs the rebel leader Khalif Hafar who is threatening the Libyan capital Tripoli says the Turkish vote will negatively affect the stability of the Mediterranean region.

The post Turkey’s Parliament votes to deploy troops to help UN-backed government in Libya appeared first on Jean-Jacques Cornish.

He was speaking a day after Turkey’s President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan said he was ready to send troop to back Libya’s weak government.

The power dynamic in North Africa, thrown into disarray by the fall of Muammar Gadaffi eight years ago,  has taken a turn with Turkey signing a security agreement with the Libyan Government.

Ankara wants to increase its influence in the increasingly insecure Mediterranean region with a view to accessing its energy resources.

This latest move by Khalifa Haftar, who’s militia has threatened Tripoli for months, will put to the test Turkey’s will to back the promises it is making with  military muscle.

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Egypt’s first democratically elected president has been jailed since being deposed in 2013 by his defense minister Abdel Fatah el Sisi who is now the country’s president.

Egyptian authorities have declared a state of emergency in Mohamed Moursi’s birthplace El Adwah where he will be buried today according to Muslim practice.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatar’sEmir Sheikh Tamin Bin Hammad Al Thani have both referred to Moursi as a martyr.

Members of the now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, that he led to victory in 2012 elections, describe his death a murder, saying he was denied medical treatment in prison for diabetes and high blood pressure.

The post Mohamed Moursi dies after collapsing in court appeared first on Jean-Jacques Cornish.

Security and business will top the agenda in talks with his counterparts from Algeria, Mauritania, Senegal and Mali .

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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a frequent visitor to African countries as his government strives to play an increasing role on the continent.

Having estranged many traditional allies by overreacting to a coup attempt in 2016, Erdogan is looking for support in multinational fora like the United Nations.

He’s taking with him some of Turkey’s business captains to participate in bilateral trade talks in Algeria and Senegal.

His first stop is Algeria where he has made a previous presidential visit.

He was in Sudan, Chad and Tunisia two months ago.

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She’ll have to swallow her own fury at President Donald Trump pulling the United States out the Paris Climate Change Agreement and play referee in the heavyweight contest expected between the US leader and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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Angela Merkel is increasingly being regarded as leader of the Western World.

As host to leaders of the most industrialized countries on the planet, she have no time to revel in this.

She has to content with the three macho men – Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – pushing their own agendas to the cost of other issues – like the growing number of African migrants  entering Europe –  she believes should be given greater priority.

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