Africaupdated 1h ago3 min read
Libya’s Eastern House Approves Turkey Maritime Deal, Egypt and EU Reject Ratification
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Eastern Libyan House of Representatives ratified the 2019 Turkey maritime delimitation agreement. Move reverses years of opposition and heightens tensions with Egypt, Greece, and Cyprus.
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Libya backs Turkey deal
Libya’s eastern-based House of Representatives voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve a 2019 memorandum of understanding with Turkey that draws a sea border across the eastern Mediterranean, reversing a 2020 rejection. Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan dismissed criticism and called the deal “entirely legitimate,” after the Tobruk-based parliament backed the agreement already signed by Libya’s internationally recognised government based in Tripoli. The memorandum was signed in Istanbul on November 27, 2019, by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Fayez al-Sarraj, then-prime minister of the UN-recognised government in Tripoli, and it followed Turkey’s support to help repel Khalifa Haftar’s assault on Tripoli in 2020.
Egypt and the European Union rejected ratification, with Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs saying the agreement “constitutes a clear infringement upon Egypt’s sovereign rights within its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf,” and the EU rejecting it as “null and void”. Greece also briefed the United Nations Security Council, while Ankara said the memorandum safeguards both countries’ rights on the basis of international law.
Opposition from Egypt and EU
Egypt’s foreign ministry rejected the eastern parliament’s ratification and said the move will have “no legal impact” on Cairo, while Israel’s Foreign Ministry condemned the decision as “Regretfully, once again we see Turkey working to destabilise the east Mediterranean region.” The European Union said the memorandum infringes on the sovereign rights of third states and does not comply with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and EU chief Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X that “This agreement infringes upon the sovereign rights of third states, it does not comply with the Law of the Sea, and is null and void.” Greece’s Foreign Ministry rejected the vote, saying it “does not alter the illegal, invalid and groundless nature of the memorandum,” and it argued the agreement disregards Greek islands between the Turkish and Libyan coasts.
Cyprus also condemned the vote, calling the memorandum “illegal, null, and void,” as the dispute continued over maritime jurisdiction areas where major natural gas discoveries have fueled competing claims. Libya’s eastern parliament also repealed two resolutions passed in 2020, including a resolution that rejected agreements with Turkey and another that cut political ties with Ankara.
What the deal changes
Libya’s eastern parliament framed the vote as a national interest decision, and Libyan lawmaker Tarek al-Jeroushi told Reuters that the agreement would strengthen Libya’s position as a political, military and economic partner to major powers.
Saddam Haftar, Khalifa Haftar’s son, said in a statement that the decisions reflected “a move toward overcoming disputes of the past,” and he called the maritime agreement a tool to protect Libya’s economic interests in the Mediterranean.
The Tripoli-based government, led by Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, called the vote “a positive development” for relations with Turkey and said cooperation would proceed “in accordance with the relevant rules and principles of international law.”
The deal also drew attention from European and regional actors because Turkey is not a party to the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, and the EU and Greece argued the agreement violates international law and infringes on third states’ rights.
The dispute now sits alongside broader regional security engagement, including Turkey’s meeting with Ibrahim Kalin and the Tripoli government’s discussion of security, regional developments, and migration.