Libya and Türkiye have reached a new level of cooperation in economy, energy and communication, according to Walid Ammar al-Lafi, the minister of State for Communication and Political Affairs of Libya.

“The Turkish government and Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) have the will to develop and strengthen their long-standing strategic ties, which have witnessed major developments, especially in recent years,” al-Lafi said as he spoke on the sidelines of an event in Istanbul.

The pair are gearing up to organize a key economic summit in Tripoli, al-Lafi said, adding, “We are aware of the interest of the two leaders on this matter, which has granted it more action capacity and priority.”

Türkiye and Libya work together on communication and combating disinformation, which benefits not only the two governments but also their respective people, al-Lafi noted.

“It is natural that there will be systematic campaigns and counterattacks against Türkiye, which is a country with a key role in the region,” al-Lafi pointed out. “However, undoubtedly, we want to learn and benefit from (Türkiye’s) experiences to strengthen our public institutions and train our staff in this field back in Libya.”

He said he and Turkish Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin continue working together on the issue.

Referring to the recent civil war in Libya, which he said has “influenced media negatively about the spread of hate speech and provocation,” al-Lafi argued that the current crisis in Gaza, too, has “exposed the partiality” of communication platforms.

“The fake news serviced about Gaza have an adverse impact,” the Libyan minister stressed, lauding neutral platforms and activists as “the power of the communication age despite these manipulation efforts.”

“They affect the global perspective with broadcasts negated by traditional media and because of this, they have contributed to the humanitarian pause in Gaza,” al-Lafi said.

Türkiye and Libya have seen closer ties in recent years, especially after the signing of security and maritime boundary pacts in November 2019, along with Türkiye’s aid to help the legitimate Libyan government push back putschist Haftar’s forces.

In the Libyan crisis, Türkiye supported the U.N.-recognized legitimate government in Tripoli against the eastern-based illegitimate forces led by Haftar, who was backed by Egypt, France, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Russia.

Türkiye’s support for the U.N.-recognized Tripoli government was critical in repelling the Haftar forces’ offensive to capture the capital, Tripoli. It led to a period of stability, resulting in the formation of a united government.

In the current situation, Türkiye suggests that an election reflecting the will of the Libyan people should be held to establish a long-lasting and stable government in the country.

Libya is central to Türkiye’s efforts to revive ties with North Africa.

The Turkish Parliament is currently mulling a motion to extend the mandate of Turkish troops in Libya for two more years, which argued that “the risks and threats arising from Libya persist for Türkiye and the entire region and if attacks resume against the legitimate government, Türkiye’s interests in both the Mediterranean basin and North Africa will be adversely affected.”

The pair also enjoy a landmark maritime boundaries deal, which secured Libya’s rights to the vast expanse of the Mediterranean and clarified western maritime borders for Türkiye. The deal, approved by the U.N., was a preemptive action against potential deals between Greece, Egypt and the Greek Cypriot administration in the divided island of Cyprus, whose northern part is controlled by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

Türkiye and Libya also signed a hydrocarbon drilling agreement in October 2022 to explore hydrocarbons in Libya’s exclusive economic zone and the mainland by Türkiye.

Source: Daily Sabah

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Peter Sztyk, a Canadian lawyer and entrepreneur who also goes by the name “Petro”, has joined a group of foreign consultants who will manage the Office of Strategic Programs, which the NOC inaugurated in February 15 during a meeting with local oil industry executives in Benghazi.

Who is Peter Sztyk?

The Canadian lawyer graduated in 1993 from Concordia University with bachelor in political science. In 1996, he earned a Bachelor of Laws from Université de Montréal before getting admitted to the Bar of Quebec in 1998 and later to the New York Bar in 2004. He speaks French, English, Ukrainian and Russian. According to Bloomberg, he became the CEO of New World Oil & Gas company in 2014.

Since 2020, he has been working with Canadian legal firm Delegatus, which states that his past experience prior to joining the firm include “the restructuring of the investment holding structure of an industrial holdings group with significant assets in Kazakhstan”.

Delegatus also says that he “acted as lead counsel and coordinating attorney for counsels from applicable jurisdictions including Kazakhstan, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Cayman Islands and Luxembourg.”

Connection to a Major Fraud Scheme

The self-described “transactional lawyer” and his American wife Botagoz Jardemalie are allegedly tied to the embezzlement of a Kazakhstani bank known as BTA Bank, which has been described as one of the world’s biggest financial frauds totaling US$5 billion, according to British newspaper The Guardian.

The bank’s former chairman Mukhtar Ablyazov perpetrated the fraud. The Kazakh government discovered the scheme in 2009, when it nationalized the bank. He was accused of “fraud on an epic scale” by using a web of shell companies and associates to siphon billions of dollars before fleeing to the UK.

After BTA Bank’s new management successfully applied for an injunction to freeze his assets in the UK, the presiding judge, Nigel Teare, ruled in 2013 that the fugitive oligarch had defrauded BTA Bank, saying that the evidence showed he had participated in a “dishonest scheme” to “misappropriate monies,” according to Reuters.

Incidentally, when Ablyazov became the sole owner of BTA Bank in 2005, Sztyk’s wife Botagoz Jardemalie was hired as managing director. She then went on to become a member of BTA Bank’s management board in October 2008, according to Open Source Investigations.

In January of 2020, American news website BuzzFeed obtained documents which link 25 of Ablyazov’s shell companies to Jardemalie. According to BuzzFeed, she fled Kazakhstan around the same time as he did and later moved to Belgium.

One of the companies used to conceal and move Ablyazov’s funds is controlled by Dubai-based British accountant named Eesh Aggarwal, as per BuzzFeed’s report. Aggarwal is described in a court declaration as “a financial advisor loyal to Ablyazov” and BuzzFeed’s documents shows direct link between Aggarwal and Sztyk.

Separate evidence reviewed by BuzzFeed shows that in summer 2013 an entity controlled by Aggarwal called Beron agreed to transfer $2 million to a company controlled by a Russian lawyer named Georgy Gomshiashvili. Beron is one of the companies Aggarwal is alleged to have used to administer the $500 million.

One of the documents seen by BuzzFeed shows that in August 2013 Gomshiashvili was introduced to Aggarwal by Sztyk. According to BuzzFeed, the same cache of documents also suggests that funds from Beron made their way to a company owned by Jardemalie.

On 4 May 2013, Kazakhstani authorities issued an arrest warrant on against Jardemalie’s, accusing her of “misappropriation or embezzlement of entrusted property” in relation to the positions she held at BTA Bank, according to Open Source Investigations. However, there are no public reports of whether or not Sztyk himself is the subject of any legally punitive procedures in Kazakhstan or anywhere else.

New Role in Libya

Established as part of a strategic plan for developing the country’s oil and gas sector, the Office of Strategic Programs will oversee the implementation of the plan using “modern methods and capabilities,” according to NOC’s chairman Farhat Bengdara.

During the inauguration ceremony in Benghazi last month, Sztyk was pictured among the panel of foreign consultants which are tasked with managing the office.

It is unclear how Sztyk, with his publicly questionable history, ended up on the final list of foreign consultants authorized by NOC to manage the Office of Strategic Programs. The NOC never disclosed whether there was a selection criteria or any form of vetting for the foreign consultants.

Until today, the NOC still hasn’t even disclosed how exactly would Sztyk, and the rest of the foreign consultants, manage the Office of Strategic Programs.

As Libya’s main source of economic welfare, the country’s oil industry has been the subject of political strife and forced blockade by the country’s warring parties who are competing to control oil for leverage.

With an allegedly corrupt consultant in charge, it seems now that the future of the NOC’s Office of Strategic Programs, and ultimately the future of Libya’s oil sector, are facing new threat from within.

Source: The Libya Update

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