Greek PM, top diplomat meet senior Libyan official

ATHENS

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met in Athens with Belgacem Haftar, head of Libya’s Development and Reconstruction Fund and son of eastern commander Khalifa Haftar, to discuss bilateral ties and economic cooperation, government sources have said.

Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis also joined the meeting, which focused on construction, energy, investments and transport, ahead of a Greek business mission to Benghazi later this fall.

The talks come as Greece seeks to counterbalance the maritime and energy accords signed between Türkiye and Libya’s Tripoli-based government.

Ankara and Tripoli struck a 2019 deal demarcating exclusive economic zones in the eastern Mediterranean, which Athens rejected as violating its sovereignty. In 2022, the two sides expanded cooperation with a memorandum granting Türkiye exploration rights offshore and on Libyan territory.

Greek media reported that Benghazi officials assured Athens the House of Representatives would not ratify the pact, despite recent signals from eastern authorities that approval could be imminent.

Khalifa Haftar, met last month with Turkish intelligence chief İbrahim Kalın. During the visit, Kalın invited Haftar to Türkiye, which he accepted in principle.