Sarraj, to stay in power, pays Erdogan $12 billion
Various reports published on Sunday reveal that 12 billion dollars have been paid by Fayez Sarraj's government to the Turkish government to achieve its military support with the deployment of troops and mercenaries against the Libyan National Army, led by Marshal Jalifa Haftar.
It is confirmed with the revealed data that the total dependence of Turkey by Sarraj's government and the allied militias that have chosen to accept the Turkish conditions to send them the military support they needed to stay in power in Tripoli is increasing.
According to the Libya Review, Sarraj's government deposited $4 billion in the Central Bank of Turkey, along with another $8 billion to pay for the cost of Turkey's military intervention, with various Turkish units and weapons systems, mercenaries and Syrian terrorists.
It was agreed to deposit these amounts during the visit of a Turkish delegation led by Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavusoglu on Wednesday 17 June to Tripoli, where he met with Sarraj and his aides.
In particular, the two sides discussed ways of implementing the military and security agreement that Turkey signed with the Sarraj government in November, and Ankara saw it as the gateway to direct military intervention in Libya.
The agreement is linked to another agreement on exploration rights in the eastern Mediterranean, signed by both parties, which gave Turkey the advantage in controlling energy sources in Libya.
Wednesday's meeting also discussed how Turkish companies can return to Libya, as well as cooperation and integration between the two countries in the fields of oil, banking and infrastructure.
The composition of the Turkish delegation indicated the objective of the visit. In addition to Çavusoglu, the delegation included, in particular, Finance Minister Berat al-Bairaq and Chief of Intelligence Haqan Fidan and several officials of the Turkish Presidency and Government.
According to various sources on the ground, Turkey has deployed in Libya more than 70 drones at a cost of $5 million per aircraft, and hundreds of armoured vehicles, in addition to thousands of Syrian mercenaries, who each charge around $1,500 per month.
Several analysts have commented that Sarraj's government is now paying Recep Tayyip Erdogan twice the price for Turkish intervention in Libya, which serves to revive the treasury in Turkey, whose public finances and economy are clearly in decline.
But these huge amounts have been deducted from the money of the Libyans who need financial resources due to the interruption of oil production, the conflict and finally the coronavirus crisis.
On the ground, Turkey shows no interest in responding to calls for an armistice, especially the Egyptian initiative, which President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi followed by ordering the Egyptian army to be ready to intervene in Libya.
TRT, a Turkish news channel, quoted Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday as saying that "our foreign exchange reserves are now over 93 billion dollars". Over the past year, Ankara and Tripoli have held several meetings on financial arrangements with the opposition of several officials from the Central Bank of Libya.
