On 22 October, both Government of National Unity (GNU) Minister of Interior (MoI) Emad Trabelsi and Chief of Staff of Libyan National Army (LNA) Ground Forces Saddam Khalifa Haftar, visited the SAHA EXPO 24 in Istanbul at the invitation of the Turkish Minister of Defense (MoD) Yaşar Güler. Trabelsi and Haftar sat next to each other during the opening ceremony and also met thereafter on several occasions. Libyan Army Deputy Chief of Staff Salaheddin al-Namroush and the Libyan ambassador to Turkey were members of Trabelsi’s dele gation, touring the exhibition together.
In the afternoon, Trabelsi was received by MoD Güler. They talked about ways to enhance security cooperation between Turkey and Libya, focusing on the importance of coordinating efforts to counter common security threats and further developing bilateral relations in this field. Moreover, ways to enhance partnerships in the field of defense industries and technology were discussed, in order to support Libyan military capabilities and, through this, enhancing regional security.
Thereafter, Güler also briefly received Saddam Haftar in what was the first official meeting between a senior representative of the Turkish government and the LNA.
Trabelsi also discussed with Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır the pro spects of joint cooperation, with a focus on utilizing Turkish expertise to support the Libyan MoI in the fields of technology and engineering to improve performance and increase efficiency.
On 23 October, MoI Trabelsi met his Turkish counterpart Ali Yerlikaya. They signed a MoU about strengthening security relations and the exchange of experiences in the fields of law enforcement. Moreover, cooperation in security training, the exchange of concrete information in combating ter rorism and organized crime, visa procedures for Libyan patients and students, as well as a range of other issues of common interest, were discussed.
On 23 and 24 October, Namroush was received by MoD Güler, the Chief of General Staff General Metin Gürak, and the Commander of the Turkish Land Forces General Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu on separate oc casions on the sidelines of the exhibition.