On 2 April 2026, the French media reported that “more than 200 Ukrainian military officers and experts are deployed in Libya, in agreement with the Tripoli government led by Abdelhamid Dbeibah,” being present at three locations.
One of these locations reportedly is a “base for launching aerial and naval drones.”
The agreement to station Ukrainian forces in western Libya had been reportedly reached between Kyiv and Tripoli in October 2025. “In return, Tripoli receives training for Libyan military personnel, particularly in the use of drones,” with “arms sales and Ukrainian investments in Libya’s oil sector” envisioned in the future.
Ukrainians have hit at least two Russian ships from western Libya. In December 2025, they struck Russian oil tanker Qendil sailing between Greece and Libya with a “drone launched from the city of Misrata.”
On 4 March 2026, they hit a Russian liquefied natural gas carrier, Arctic Metagaz, “by a Magura V5 autonomous surface naval drone” launched “from the Mellitah base, where Ukrainian military personnel are stationed.”
Efforts Categories: Ukraine-Libya Military Cooperation, Ukraine’s Military Force against Russia (Mediterranean Sea)
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