LIBYA: Mandela: US, Britain have 'shifted the goal posts'

February 21, 2001
Issue 

BY NORM DIXON

Former South African president Nelson Mandela has accused the British and US governments of "shifting the goal posts" by refusing to honour a deal to lift UN sanctions against Libya.

Mandela told the February 9 London Independent that Britain and the United States had "reneged" on the terms of the settlement. Mandela also told reporters in Cape Town on February 1 that he intends to urge US President George W. Bush to honour the agreement made by former president Bill Clinton.

On February 7, Saudi Arabian ambassador to Washington Prince Bandar bin Sultan confirmed that there had been a "comprehensive agreement" between all the parties in the Lockerbie case. "All the parties approved it. We are now working to have it implemented as agreed", he told London's Al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper.

UN sanctions, which have cost Libya more than US$33 billion and an estimated 10,000 lives, were imposed in 1992 by the UN Security Council after Libya refused to extradite two if its citizens to Scotland or the US to stand trial for the 1988 Lockerbie air disaster. Libya did not believe that the men were guilty and doubted that they would get a fair trial in Britain or the US. Libya denied involvement in the disaster.

In August 1998, Libyan leader Muammer Qadhafi formally agreed to the trial taking place in a third country but Libya remained wary. The breakthrough came after "shuttle diplomacy" by Mandela, his representatives and Prince Bandar. Mandela assured Qadhafi that Washington and London would support the removal of UN sanctions if the Libyan government cooperated in the conduct of the trial.

"Mandela's word is stronger than a Security Council resolution and stronger than any other commitments", Qadhafi said in a speech broadcast on Libyan TV on March 2, 1999. "The most important thing is Mandela's credibility... If the credibility of Mandela and Saudi Arabia is sacrificed and if they too are betrayed, then nothing matters." The Libyans arrived in the Netherlands on April 5, 1999.

As soon as the Libyans' arrival was confirmed, the Security Council suspended the sanctions. UN sanctions were supposed to be lifted 90 days after the hand-over of the accused, if the UN secretary-general was assured that Libya had "renounced" terrorism and would pay any compensation awarded to the victims' families. Those assurances were given but the US and Britain continued to block the lifting of sanctions until the final verdict.

With the controversial guilty verdict handed down against Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi on January 31 — and statements by the Libyan government that it would pay any compensation levied by the civil courts — the conditions imposed by the Security Council for the lifting of sanctions on Libya were met.

Thawing relations

The agreement brokered by Mandela was widely seen — especially by Libya — as a prelude to a less hostile attitude by Washington towards Libya. The third country solution offered both Libya and the Clinton administration a face-saving mechanism to defuse the Lockerbie issue and, on the part of Washington, begin a gradual renewal of business relations with oil-rich Libya.

The Clinton administration had already been sending subtle signals that better relations between Libya and Washington were possible. Clinton and US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright both publicly praised Mandela's diplomacy that led to the holding of the Netherlands trial.

On June 11, 1999, US and British diplomats in New York held their first direct talks with Libyan officials for 18 years. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan arranged the meeting at Washington's request. Libya's foreign minister for Africa Ali Triki told the London Independent that, "The three countries are looking forward to normalising relations and boosting trade".

In July 1999, the Clinton administration approved a visit to Libya by a group of US oil company executives to inspect their frozen assets there.

While the US maintained that its tough unilateral sanctions would remain in force until Libya renounced "terror in word and deed", it renewed them in 2000 for six months rather than the usual period of 12 months — the clear implication being that they may be eased after the Lockerbie verdict.

In September 1999, US officials told the Christian Science Monitor that the Clinton administration was considering removing Libya from its list of governments that sponsor terrorism. This would help US oil companies to return to Libya, they said.

The US State Department's 1999 annual report on terrorism noted that Libya had "not been implicated in any international terrorist acts for several years". A 1999 congressional report also stated: "Libyan sponsorship of terrorism has declined to the point at which the administration is considering removing it from the list [of terrorist states]."

The thawing of relations seemed to be part of a more general rapproachement with the West. Libya mended its relations with France in 1999 by paying $31 million to the families of those killed in the bombing a French UTA airliner in 1989.

Libya had cooperated with a French investigation that led to the conviction of six Libyans. However, Libya refused to extradite the suspects and they were tried in absentia. The Libyan government continued to deny responsibility and Paris accepted its denial.

In July 1999, Britain resumed full diplomatic relations. Relations were severed 15 years earlier, after a British police officer was shot dead by somebody inside Libya's London embassy. Relations were restored after Libya accepted responsibility for the shooting.

Open for business

In the late 1990s Libya announced that it was "open for business". US oil companies have watched enviously as their European counterparts have positioned themselves to take advantage of Libya's eventual rehabilitation. Libya has oil reserves of around 30 billion barrels, the world's third largest.

Washington's unilateral sanctions imposed against Libya by the Reagan administration in 1986 resulted in major US oil companies abandoning $2 billion worth of fixed assets and annual income worth around $2.1 billion. Libya has promised that these assets will be returned if and when the US companies resume operations.

"We still have assets there, operated by the Libyan government. If we were permitted by US law we would go back", a spokesperson for US oil company Conoco told the April 7, 1999, Financial Times. "We don't believe that unilateral sanctions are very effective, and we would take the position that, with UN sanctions lifted, there shouldn't be a unilateral stance by the US. If they are lifted we would definitely go back."

The UN sanctions banned the sale of equipment to maintain and improve Libya's oil industry and banned commercial flights to and from Libya. With the suspension of sanctions, there was a surge of interest in Libya by Europe's largest corporations.

Immediate infrastructure, communications, transport and oil and gas projects, estimated to be worth up to US$14 billion, are on the drawing board. The Libyan government wants foreign investment of $35 billion between 2001 and 2005, and at least $10 billion in foreign investment in oil and gas exploration between 2000 and 2010.

Among the non-oil projects are a $9.6 billion contract to supply Libyan Arab Airlines with new aircraft, train staff and rebuild Libya's three international airports; a $4 billion new 2178-km railway; and the upgrading of Libya's ports.

The day after the air embargo was suspended, Italy's foreign minister Lamberto Dini flew into Tripoli. Italy is Libya's former colonial master. In 1998, Qadhafi promised that Italian companies would be given preference for post-sanctions contracts.

Libya supplies 31% of Italy's oil and the Italian ENI oil company has plans for a $3.8 billion gas pipeline between Libya and Italy. ENI produces around 16% of Libya's oil. Italy's Agip, Germany's Wintershall, France's Elf and Total and Spain's Repsol are also active in Libya's oil exploration and production.

Italy is keen that Libya join the talks aimed at creating a European Union-Mediterranean free trade group.

In April 1999, Libya's energy minister Abdallah Badri addressed 400 top oil and gas company executives — including from the US — in Switzerland and invited them to resume activities. He told them that a new law to encourage foreign investment was being drafted that would grant incentives to foreign companies to invest in oil projects.

In September 1999, Qadhafi made a surprise visit to a business conference in Tripoli. "You are welcome to invest in Libya. We have laws to protect investments. We are not pirates or rebels or terrorists", he declared. Qadhafi said that politics and business should be separated and US companies were free to return to their abandoned operations.

In November 2000, 170 international investment company representatives gathered in Tripoli to discuss plans for Libya's tourism, agricultural and fisheries industries. Qadhafi addressed the conference and urged those present to invest in Libya. Qadhafi described Libya as Africa's northern gate for European investors. He assured them that their investments would be protected by the government.

Lift the sanctions!

On February 2, Salim Ahmed Salim, secretary-general of the Organisation of African Unity, pointed out that with the end of the Lockerbie trial, UN sanctions on Libya should be "immediately and permanently" lifted. Salim noted that Libya had extended its full cooperation in line with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

On February 7, China's foreign minister Tang Jiaxuan pledged that China would "make unremitting efforts" to have the UN sanctions completely lifted.

On February 8, the president of Chad and chairperson of the presidential council of the Community Sahel and Saharan States Idriss Deby met with Qadhafi. Deby supported the lifting of sanctions and the immediate release of "the abducted hostage, Libya citizen Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Megrahi".

South African President Thabo Mbeki phoned Qadhafi on February 11 and told him that South Africa is demanding "the immediate and permanent lifting of the sanctions imposed on Libya".

Similar statements have been made by Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Italy, the Arab Maghreb Union (which groups Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia) and the Organisation of Islamic Conference.

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