30 Aug 2021; MEMO: Turkey is seeking an agreement with the Taliban similar to the one concluded in Libya, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced on Sunday.
"I cannot say that Turkey won't conclude an agreement with the Taliban as we did in Libya. We can do that," Erdogan told reporters in the Bosnian capital city of Sarajevo, stressing that it was "enough to find a partner worthy of negotiations."
Referring to the recent events at the Kabul airport, Erdogan said that it was not an easy task to maintain security at the airport, adding: "Some 200 people recently died there."
He also noted that his troops in Afghanistan had returned after Ankara's recent offer to provide security at the Kabul airport following the withdrawal of US forces.
Taliban Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid earlier confirmed that the group sought to establish: "Good relations with Turkey, but without their military presence in Afghanistan."
In November 2019, Erdogan and the Chairman of the Libyan Presidential Council and the Prime Minister of the internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez Al-Sarraj signed a Memorandum of Cooperation in the military field, under which Turkish Parliament approved a military support bill for Libya in January 2020.
