Yongpeng Sun-Tastaufen
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https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/28/us-congress-pushes-sanctions-turkey-russia-libya-war/
Putin and Erdogan “act when there’s a stick involved,” a House aide said.
U.S. lawmakers are advancing a bill that would compel the Trump administration to levy sanctions on Russia and Turkey for fueling an escalation in the civil war in Libya, as the Defense Department has warned about the deployment of foreign mercenaries into the war zone.
The Libya Stabilization Act, which is expected to pass out of the House Foreign Affairs Committee this week, would impose mandatory sanctions on both countries within six months, giving the White House wide leeway to revoke U.S. visas or freeze funds in American banks, a bid to keep Russia in particular from establishing a bridgehead across the Mediterranean.
“We don’t want Russia to establish a foothold on what is essentially the soft underbelly of NATO in Europe,” a House aide familiar with the legislation told Foreign Policy. “Other than chastising them there haven’t been significant penalties.”
“With [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan and [Vladimir] Putin and more broadly, they act when there’s a stick involved or a penalty held above their head,” the aide added, referring to the Turkish and Russian presidents.
The legislation comes as the conflict in Libya is intensifying, with Egypt the latest country to consider wading into the fight, which pits an internationally recognized government in Tripoli—the Government of National Accord, which is supported by Turkey—against Russia-backed rebels in the eastern part of the country.
Aides said the legislation would allow for sanctions on Egypt if President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi goes ahead with his threat to send the Egyptian military into Libya in support of the so-called Libyan National Army in the east, which is also backed by the United Arab Emirates. The decision by the Egyptian parliament this month to approve a troop deployment to Libya could put Ankara and Cairo on a collision course and further aggravate the proxy conflict.
But despite pressure from allies like the UAE to enter the conflict, Egypt may not be eager to take on a resurgent Turkey—and open the door to U.S. sanctions. On a recent call with U.S. President Donald Trump, Sisi appeared to back off a pledge to intervene in the war-torn country, instead calling for a cease-fire.
“Cairo is very hesitant and skeptical when it comes to facing off against the GNA’s coalition knowing that it is backed by a very assertive Turkey that is officially in western Libya,” said Jalel Harchaoui, a research fellow at the Clingendael Institute in The Hague.
While parties to the conflict have doubled down on their military presence—the U.S. military has called out the use of Russian mercenaries and the deployment of more than a dozen Russian MiG-29 and Su-24 fighter aircraft to the country—there is little appetite to escalate the conflict, said Galip Dalay, a fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy.
“All the actors in Libya are consolidating their military presence on the ground, but at the same time they’re all open to talks too,” he said.
Putin and Erdogan “act when there’s a stick involved,” a House aide said.
U.S. lawmakers are advancing a bill that would compel the Trump administration to levy sanctions on Russia and Turkey for fueling an escalation in the civil war in Libya, as the Defense Department has warned about the deployment of foreign mercenaries into the war zone.
The Libya Stabilization Act, which is expected to pass out of the House Foreign Affairs Committee this week, would impose mandatory sanctions on both countries within six months, giving the White House wide leeway to revoke U.S. visas or freeze funds in American banks, a bid to keep Russia in particular from establishing a bridgehead across the Mediterranean.
“We don’t want Russia to establish a foothold on what is essentially the soft underbelly of NATO in Europe,” a House aide familiar with the legislation told Foreign Policy. “Other than chastising them there haven’t been significant penalties.”
“With [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan and [Vladimir] Putin and more broadly, they act when there’s a stick involved or a penalty held above their head,” the aide added, referring to the Turkish and Russian presidents.
The legislation comes as the conflict in Libya is intensifying, with Egypt the latest country to consider wading into the fight, which pits an internationally recognized government in Tripoli—the Government of National Accord, which is supported by Turkey—against Russia-backed rebels in the eastern part of the country.
Aides said the legislation would allow for sanctions on Egypt if President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi goes ahead with his threat to send the Egyptian military into Libya in support of the so-called Libyan National Army in the east, which is also backed by the United Arab Emirates. The decision by the Egyptian parliament this month to approve a troop deployment to Libya could put Ankara and Cairo on a collision course and further aggravate the proxy conflict.
But despite pressure from allies like the UAE to enter the conflict, Egypt may not be eager to take on a resurgent Turkey—and open the door to U.S. sanctions. On a recent call with U.S. President Donald Trump, Sisi appeared to back off a pledge to intervene in the war-torn country, instead calling for a cease-fire.
“Cairo is very hesitant and skeptical when it comes to facing off against the GNA’s coalition knowing that it is backed by a very assertive Turkey that is officially in western Libya,” said Jalel Harchaoui, a research fellow at the Clingendael Institute in The Hague.
While parties to the conflict have doubled down on their military presence—the U.S. military has called out the use of Russian mercenaries and the deployment of more than a dozen Russian MiG-29 and Su-24 fighter aircraft to the country—there is little appetite to escalate the conflict, said Galip Dalay, a fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy.
“All the actors in Libya are consolidating their military presence on the ground, but at the same time they’re all open to talks too,” he said.
