October 6, 2022 — Tripoli (AFP)Libya's Tripoli-based prime minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah has defended a deal signed earlier this week with Turkey over oil and gas exploration in the Mediterranean, which angered European nations. In the 2019 agreement, Turkey had laid claim to large areas of the eastern Mediterranean, angering Greece, France and the EU. On Monday, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said he and his Egyptian counterpart "both challenged the legitimacy" of the deal. Greece, Egypt and Cyprus believe the 2019 agreement violates their economic rights in an area suspected to contain vast natural gas reserves. Dbeibah retorted on Wednesday that he was "not concerned about the stance of states that have opposed the deal".

Source: Libya Today October 06, 2022 17:49 UTC