ANKARA: Turkey is opposed to sanctions against Libya over its bloody crackdown on anti-regime protests as they are likely to hurt the country's already impoverished people, Turkey's prime minister told AFP.
"It is wrong to act hastily in such situations. And it is not right at present to impose sanctions on Libya since such measures punish the people," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in an interview late Wednesday.
He was speaking after the United States and the European Union raised the prospect of slapping sanctions on Libya over its deadly crackdown on protests against veteran strongman Moamer Kadhafi since last week, following similar uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.
Erdogan described the turmoil as "very worrying" but added he was "convinced that those who govern Libya will eventually see the realities."
"We are not supposed to meddle in Libya's affairs... and it is up to the Libyan people to decide their own fate," he said.
Turkey has notable economic interests in Libya, where about 200 Turkish companies are involved in construction projects amounting to more than $15 billion (11 billion euros).
Since the weekend, Turkey has scrambled to repatriate thousands of nationals from the North African country, where about 25,000 Turks are based, mostly as employees of construction sites.
On Tuesday, Erdogan urged Libya against making the "mistake" of ignoring its people's demands for freedom and warned that "ruthless interventions against those who voice democratic demands will increase the spiral of violence."
The Turkish leader, a hero of the Arab street with his frequent outbursts against Israel, had lent vocal support to anti-regime protests in Egypt that forced Hosni Mobarak to step down earlier this month.
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