Turkey said it would send troops to Libya after Tripoli’s UN-backed government requested greater military support in its battle against a rival administration, in a move that risks escalating tensions that have already drawn in regional powers.

Turkey last month agreed to a defence pact with Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj’s Tripoli-based government to supply arms, share intelligence and provide training to security officers fighting for the embattled administration.

“We will submit a deployment motion to parliament. And with its approval we will much more effectively support the legitimate government in Libya,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a speech to party members on Thursday. Turkey’s parliament will vote on the motion on January 8 or 9, he added.