During their consultations in Ankara, Egyptian and Turkish diplomats discussed the withdrawal of Turkish servicemen and foreign mercenaries from Libya, TASS reported, citing a diplomatic source close to these talks.

The meetings took place on Tuesday and Wednesday, and were led by Egyptian deputy foreign minister Hamdi Sanad Loza and his Turkish counterpart, Sedat Onal.

"The second phase [of these talks] was aimed at examining the seriousness of Ankara's intentions and the degree of readiness to seek a breakthrough in the issues that cause the most disagreement," the source said. "We need more time to evaluate the results of the talks and formulate the final position, based on which it was possible to talk about the appointment of an Egyptian ambassador to Turkey, or to arrange a meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries."

"Now the ball is in the court of Turkey from which we expect a final position on the developments unrolling in Libya; among other things, on the withdrawal of its armed forces and foreign mercenaries [from Libya]," the source added. "This also applies to the dissolution of the armed militias and Ankara's position on Syria, Iraq, and the Eastern Mediterranean."