Libya’s UN-backed government in Tripoli is unhappy with Greece for expelling its Ambassador to the country, saying it was “unacceptable”, Foreign Minister Mohamed Siala told local TV channel Libya al-Ahrar at the weekend.
“Greece’s decision to expel the Libyan ambassador from its territory is unacceptable,” Minister Siala told the local channel.
Libya’s ambassador to Greece was summoned to Greek foreign ministry on Friday morning where he was informed of the decision for his expulsion and was given a 72-hour deadline to leave the country, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias was quoted by Greek national news agency AMNA.
The step was made after Athens decried the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between Turkey and Libya on November 27 on the establishment of maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean Sea.
The Greek side said the MoU could infringe upon the sovereignty rights of Greek islands in the Mediterranean, a Xinhua news agency report said.
Siala called on Greece to resort to international law to resolve any dispute regarding the MoU, stressing that “Libya has the right to sign MoUs with whoever it wants.”
“Greece has no diplomatic representation in Libya. If there was an accredited Greek ambassador in Libya, we would have taken similar procedure,” Siala said.
The European Union demanded the Libyan authorities to explain the contents of the MoU, stressing full solidarity with Greece and Cyprus against Turkey.