Defense Ministry denies Ukraine is using Misrata Base to attack Russian ships

The Government of National Unity’s Ministry of Defense has denied the existence of any agreement allowing Misrata Military Base to be used for operations outside the sovereign duties of the Libyan state, responding to a CNN report claiming that Ukraine is using the base as a launch point for attacks on Russia’s shadow fleet.

In a statement on Saturday, the ministry said it had reviewed claims in the report alleging that Misrata Military Base was being used as a staging ground for military operations targeting foreign parties or interests.

It stressed that there is “no agreement, arrangement or coordination allowing Misrata Military Base, or any national military facility, to be used as a platform for launching attacks or carrying out military operations of any kind outside the framework of the sovereign duties of the Libyan state.”

The ministry said it had not granted any foreign party permission to use Libyan territory, facilities, airspace or territorial waters to conduct hostile actions against any state or entity, adding that no national military facility had been designated or used for such purposes.

It noted that all forms of military cooperation and technical training with friendly countries are conducted within approved official and legal frameworks, reaffirming its full commitment to Libya’s sovereignty and its rejection of the use of Libyan territory as a launch point for activities that could jeopardize the country’s national security or foreign relations.

CNN, meanwhile, quoted “one of the Ukrainian naval drone operators deployed in Libya” as saying his unit was using an international military base in Misrata as a launch point for attacks on Russia’s so-called shadow fleet.

The network also reported that Ukrainian units specializing in drone operations have been deployed in northwestern Libya since the end of last year, citing a source in Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence and a Ukrainian drone operator.

According to the report, the Ukrainians are also training local forces in Libya in exchange for using their expertise and positions to conduct operations linked to countering Russian interests in the region.

The Ukrainian government has not officially confirmed the presence of these units in Libya. CNN, however, said their presence had become an “open secret,” noting that French broadcaster RFI had previously reported the presence of Ukrainian personnel in the country.