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</A> -Cui Bono?-
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www.wsws.org
WSWS : News & Analysis : Middle East : Libya
Libyan arms scandal shows widening rift between Europe and US
By Trevor Johnson
17 January 2000
Back to screen version
Growing foreign policy differences between Europe and the US were highlighted
by the revelation that British Customs officials had found a consignment of
Scud missile parts bound for Libya in May, months before the Blair Labour
government restored links with the regime of Colonel Muammar Gadhaffi.
Last week's Sunday Times ran a front-page story, portraying the missile parts
shipment as a major plot to break Britain's arms embargo against Libya. The 32
crates were labelled as spare parts for cars, although carrying the name of a
clothing company in Taiwan called Hontex. The Sunday Times initially claimed
that the Scud parts were capable of extending the missile's range from 200 to
600 miles, putting southern Italy within Libya's reach, but the foreign office
later denied this, saying that the parts were only spares for existing
ballistics.
The story said that the parts had been discovered in November, after Britain
had normalised its relations with Libya. Eventually, the British government
admitted that the parts first arrived at Gatwick and had been discovered by
Customs officers and intelligence staff, in May of last year. Although the
officials were said to have asked British Airways at Gatwick airport to stop
the shipment, the crates were loaded onto a plane and flown on to Malta. Only
then were they seized by the Maltese authorities and returned to Gatwick in
July, the same month that diplomatic relations were officially restored. The
shipment was impounded pending investigation and formally seized by Customs in
November.
The government said that it had concealed the find for months because it did
not want to jeopardise its diplomatic relations with Libya. The reason for this
sensitivity towards what was once a pariah state—and one still subject to an
official arms embargo—can be found in the race by Britain and the rest of
Europe to secure their share of lucrative oil and infrastructure projects in
Libya.
Britain and the European Union (EU) have been working to improve relations with
Libya, ever since Gadhaffi allowed the handing over for trial in the
Netherlands of two Libyan suspects in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over
Lockerbie in 1988. Last September, the EU lifted most remaining sanctions
imposed on Libya after the Lockerbie bombing, although the arms embargo
remains.
Libya has around 3 percent of the world's known oil reserves, and the valuable
raw material can be extracted there more cheaply than from many other
countries. Anything that cut across Britain's striving for friendly relations
with Libya would allow Italy and France to secure their domination over the
region's oil. Italian energy producer ENI has reached a deal with Libya's
National Oil Corporation to jointly develop gas and oil reserves estimated at
around 1.8 billion barrels. ENI, which has been in Libya since 1959 and
currently produces 80,000 barrels a day from the Bu-Attifel oilfield, predicted
the deal could generate investments of $5.5 billion. Production is expected to
begin in late 2003.
Gadhaffi has given Italy first priority on all contracts to upgrade oil
installations, but British oil equipment suppliers are hoping to take some of
this business, exporting new equipment to replace the antiquated machinery
currently in use. British Aerospace has been holding discussions with Libya for
some time (even before the dropping of sanctions) on a $10 billion contract to
modernise Libya's airline, and Labour MP Roger Stott described Libya as
“traditionally ... a strong British market”. In 1992, prior to the introduction
of sanctions, exports from Britain to Libya totalled £228 million.
Libya has denied accusations of trying to ship missile parts through Britain,
blaming forces that are "unhappy with the current improvement of co-operation
between the Libyan Jamahiriya and Great Britain" for whipping up the issue.
This is a veiled reference to the US government, which has conflicted with the
European states over the thaw in their relations with Libya.
In 1986 Washington severed all economic and commercial relations with Libya,
accusing it of giving aid to international terrorists. The US used the
Lockerbie bombing to whip up a frenzy against Libya and justify the imposition
of UN sanctions. In 1996 Congress passed the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act, which
imposes penalties on countries investing more than $40 million per year in
Libya's oil and gas industry.
In May last year, the Senate passed a resolution urging President Clinton to
prevent the lifting of UN sanctions until Tripoli renounces terrorism, pays
compensation to the families of the Pan Am 103 victims and agrees to co-operate
with the trial of two Libyan suspects.
After Libya handed its two citizens over for trial, many expected that the US
sanctions would be softened and the way opened for relations to improve between
the two countries. Instead, a clear divergence of European and US policy
developed in respect to Libya.
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