Key facts
- Libya's Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah is ready to address Egypt's concerns over Mediterranean maritime boundaries.
- Egypt rejected a maritime boundaries agreement between Libya and Turkey.
- The Libya-Turkey maritime deal was originally agreed in 2019.
Libya's Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah told Egypt's intelligence chief Hassan Rashad that his government was ready to address Cairo's concerns over Mediterranean maritime boundaries and economic waters, his office said on Saturday. The phone call between Dbeibah and Rashad also covered bilateral relations and coordination on matters of mutual interest. Egypt had previously rejected a maritime boundaries agreement ratified by Libya's eastern-based parliament involving Turkey, declaring the deal null and void. The Libya-Turkey maritime deal was originally agreed in 2019 by Libya's internationally recognized government in Tripoli, but the rival eastern administration under Khalifa Haftar withheld its approval for years. This agreement is part of a long-running dispute over maritime claims and energy exploration rights in the eastern Mediterranean, with Greece, Egypt, and Cyprus opposing the accord.