Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu this morning denied that his country had supplied weapons to Libyan militias, and that it had done so through Malta.

Mr Çavuşoğlu, currently on a visit to Malta, was reacting to claims in sections of the foreign press. 

“These allegations are completely false. Turkey is for a ceasefire in Libya, why would we supply weapons if we are supporting an end to violence in Libya?” Mr Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said during a meeting with Foreign Minister George Vella.
 
Mr Çavuşoğlu described the claims as “libellous” and said they originated from Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, both of which had their own reasons for propelling such falsehoods.

The Turkish foreign minister is in Malta for the signing of a memorandum of understanding. The agreement will see Malta’s Academy for Diplomatic Studies team up with its Turkish counterpart for training of diplomats.

Dr Vella said that in his talks with Mr Çavuşoğlu they had discussed the situation in Libya, and both agreed that a military intervention was not the solution.

Mr Çavuşoğlu is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Joseph Muscat later today, to discuss Turkey’s possible EU accession and migration solutions.