Government of National Accord

Russia has not sent military personnel to Libya and the Russian upper house of parliament has not received a request to approve such a dispatch, Interfax on May 27 cited Vladimir Dzhabarov, first deputy head of the upper house's international affairs committee, as saying.

Russia recently sent fighter jets to Libya to support Russian mercenaries fighting for strongman Khalifa Haftar in the long-running conflict, the U.S. military said on May 26.    

Hundreds of Russian mercenaries fighting for Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar against the internationally recognized government were evacuated from combat zones south of the capital Tripoli, according to various reports.

The reports come after a series of setbacks for Haftar's year-long offensive to seize the capital from the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA).

Senior Turkish and American officials have discussed attacks by the General Khalifa Haftar forces that have been escalating recently against the internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) based in Tripoli, Ankara said in a statement.

Turkey warned on Thursday against any attacks on its interests in Libya by Khalifa Haftar's forces after his Libyan National Army (LNA) threatened to respond to recent military setbacks by striking Turkish positions in the country.

"In the event Turkish interests in Libya are targeted, this will have very grave consequences," said Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg have discussed on the phone the recent developments in Libya and Syria as the latter reiterated the alliance continued to support to the internationally-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA), which is under attack by General Khalifa Haftar's forces.

NATO is ready to support Libya's government led by Fayez al-Sarraj, the head of the military alliance said on May 14.

In an interview with Italian daily La Repubblica, Jens Stoltenberg noted that NATO has 30 partners, which on many issues have different positions, but added that Turkey remains an important ally.

The U.N.-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya on April 30 said it rejected the unilateral truce call made by its arch-enemy, renegade commander Khalifa Haftar -- the warlord of the armed forces based in the east. 

Forces loyal to Libya's renegade commander Khalifa Haftar on April 30 announced a unilateral ceasefire during the holy month of Ramadan.

Ahmed Al-Mismari, a spokesperson for the Libyan National Army (LNA), said all military operations have been paused during the Muslim fasting month.

Russia on April 23 praised Turkey's efforts in Idlib, northwestern Syria that aim to eliminate terrorists.

Speaking at a news conference in the capital, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow expects the Turkish military to separate opposition groups from what it called "terrorists" in the region.