BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd November, 2020) The German authorities on Monday confirmed reports about an interrupted inspection of a Turkish vessel suspected of smuggling weapons to Libya and said that EU leaders would discuss the incident at the December summit.
Rosaline A was stopped on Sunday by Germany's frigate Hamburg approximately 124 miles to the north of Bengazi as a part of the EU anti-arms smuggling operation, IRINI. The German forces, however, are said to have been unable to inspect the vessel because of the protest by Ankara.
"The crew was absolutely open to cooperation, provided all opportunities, but then Turkey post-factum said that it did not agree to the inspection and it was stopped. This is a classic protocol for such cases," German Defense Ministry spokesman Christian Thiels said at a press briefing, adding that no prohibited items were discovered before Ankara required the inspection be suspended.
His German Foreign Ministry counterpart, Andrea Sasse, said that Berlin treated the incident very seriously and expected all participants of the Berlin conference, including Turkey, to uphold the 2011 arms embargo.
"Overall, the issue of Turkey will be on the agenda of the European Council in December, they will discuss such incidents as well," Sasse said.
The next European Council meeting is scheduled to take place from December 10-11.
On June 14, 2016, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution authorizing inspections of vessels suspected of breaking the 2011 arms embargo on Libya, which is engulfed in hostilities between the Libyan National Army and the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA).
The armed conflict escalated in 2019, prompting international peacemaking efforts. In January of that year, an international conference took place in Berlin, with the participation of Russia, the United States, the European Union, Turkey and Egypt. The conference's participants promised to commit to the 2011 embargo as well as subsequent UN resolutions.
To better combat the arms smuggling, the European Union launched the IRINI mission on March 31. It conducts inspections of ships near the coast of Libya as well as uses aerial and satellite assets to monitor smuggling via aerial and land routes. The mission's mandate is expected to last until March 31, 2021, but could be extended.
The initiative was met with criticism by Ankara, which is currently supporting the GNA. Turkey claimed the operation did not take into account arms sent to the forces of GNA's rival � the Libyan National Army led by Khalifa Haftar.
