TRIPOLI, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- The UN-backed Libyan government official said on Friday that Greece's expelling of the Libyan ambassador is "unacceptable."
"Greece's decision to expel the Libyan ambassador from its territory is unacceptable," Foreign Minister Mohamed Siala told local TV channel Libya al-Ahrar.
Libya's ambassador to Greece was summoned to Greek foreign ministry on Friday morning where he was informed of the decision for his expulsion and was given a 72-hour deadline to leave the country, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias was quoted by Greek national news agency AMNA.
The step was made after Athens decried the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between Turkey and Libya on Nov. 27 on the establishment of maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean Sea.
The Greek side said the MoU could infringe upon the sovereignty rights of Greek islands in the Mediterranean.
Siala called on Greece to resort to international law to resolve any dispute regarding the MoU, stressing that "Libya has the right to sign MoUs with whoever it wants."
"Greece has no diplomatic representation in Libya. If there was an accredited Greek ambassador in Libya, we would have taken similar procedure," Siala said.
The European Union demanded the Libyan authorities to explain the contents of the MoU, stressing full solidarity with Greece and Cyprus against Turkey.
