PARIS--Despite Ankaras attempts to portray Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as working closely on Libya with US President Donald Trump, Washington distanced itself Wednesday from Turkish military moves in the Mediterranean that are directly related to the conflict in the North African nation.

Trumps national security adviser said the US is very sympathetic to France in its dispute with Turkey over a naval standoff in the Mediterranean Sea between the two NATO allies, which was blamed by Paris on the Turkish navys aggressive behaviour.

The festering row between France and Turkey has exposed NATOs struggle to keep order among its ranks, and its diminished US leadership under Trump. It has also shown Turkey to be trying to take advantage of NATO divisions and of Washingtons mixed signals to try to impose its diktat in the Mediterranean and intensify its military intervention in Libya without regard for European concerns.

NATO allies shouldnt be turning fire control radars on each other. Thats not good, national security adviser Robert OBrien told reporters in Paris on Wednesday. He said Trump is available to help defuse tensions, thanks to his personal relationships with Erdogan and French President Emmanuel Macron.

OBriens statements were interpreted by experts as a sign of emerging discomfort in Washington about Ankaras abrasive behaviour vis-a-vis Europe over Libya, oil and gas drilling and the Hagia Sophia episode.

The Turkish presidency said Tuesday that Erdogan and Trump had agreed during a phone call to cooperate more closely, as allies, to promote lasting stability in Libya.

According to French accounts of the June 10 incident, the frigate Courbet was illuminated by the targeting radar of a Turkish warship that was escorting a cargo ship.

France said it was acting on intelligence from NATO that the civilian ship could be involved in trafficking arms to Libya in violation of the UN embargo. The Courbet was part of the alliances Operation Sea Guardian, which helps provide maritime security in the Mediterranean.

Turkeys foreign minister accused France of lying, and Turkeys ambassador to France said the French navy was harassing the Turkish convoy.

We are very sympathetic to the French concerns, OBrien said, while acknowledging differing accounts of what happened. Were taking it very seriously.

Macron has also accused Turkey of flouting its commitments by ramping up its military presence in Libya and bringing in jihadists and mercenaries from Syria.

The United States is by far the most influential of the NATO allies but has played a less prominent role under Trump, who has publicly berated European members and Canada for not spending enough on defence budgets. Trump has threatened to take US troops out of Germany without consulting allies and has pulled out of multiple international agreements that Europeans regard as important to their security.

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US distances itself from Turkey over naval incident with France | | AW - The Arab Weekly