Obama, Turkish PM consult on Libya

WASHINGTON, March 22 (UPI) -- President Barack Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan have had ongoing telephone consultations on the situation in Libya, the White House said.

Obama expressed appreciation in a Monday telephone call for Turkey's ongoing humanitarian efforts in Libya including its assistance in the release and safe passage to Tunisia of four New York Times journalists who had been detained in Libyan custody, a White House release said Tuesday.

Reaffirming their support for the full implementation of U.N. Security Council resolutions to protect the Libyan people, the president and the prime minister said implementing and enforcing the U.N. resolutions would require a broad-based international effort including Arab states.

They committed themselves to the goal of helping the Libyan people seize the opportunity to transform their country by installing a democratic system, the White House said.