US Lifts Economic Sanctions, Libya Welcomes

TRIPOLI, September 21 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Libya has welcomed Washington's lifting of most of the economic sanctions slapped on Tripoli because of US charges of sponsoring terrorism, saying it was in the interest of both countries.

“This decision is the logical and positive result of a series of contacts between the United States and Libya and the diplomacy of peaceful dialogue,” Jomaa Abulkheir, a spokesman for the Libyan foreign ministry said, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

He told AFP the lifting of US sanctions “is in the interest of both countries” and stressed that it came after both parties “maintained their commitments,” without elaborating on details.

US President George W. Bush Monday, September 20, cancelled most economic sanctions on Libya, after Tripoli dealt with American concerns over its plans to develop weapons of mass destruction -- paving the way for direct flights between the two countries and unblocking some 1.3 billion dollars (1.06 billion euros) in frozen assets.

The US move clears the way for huge compensation payments by Libya to the families of victims of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing.

Bush signed an executive order removing remaining economic restrictions on aviation services with Libya, permitting direct, scheduled and chartered flights, and unblocking approximately 1.3 billion dollars in frozen assets.

“This step is taken in response to actions that Libya has taken over the past nine months to address concerns by the international community about its weapons of mass destruction programs,” State Department spokesman Adam Ereli told reporters.

Libya had set a September 22 deadline for the United States to lift sanctions to pave the way for payment of the next chunk of compensation to families of the 270 people killed in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.

“We expect the families of the victims of Pan Am 103 to receive over one billion dollars in additional compensation from Libya,” White House spokesman Scott McClellan said in a statement.

He said the families' “determination and courage” to hold Libya accountable “contributed greatly to efforts to secure an agreement under which Libya agreed to end all its WMD programs and pledged to end all connections with terrorism.”

Some families of those killed in the bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, have pressed Bush to remove all sanctions, including dropping Libya from the list of “state sponsors of terrorism,” to allow for the payment of the full 2.7 billion dollars in compensation under a deal reached last year.

Sponsor of Terrorism

But Libya remains on a US State Department list of countries that are sponsors of terrorism.

Tripoli last December announced it was abandoning its weapons of mass destruction program following months of negotiations between Britain, the United States and Libya.

The United Nations lifted international sanctions against Libya last September and Washington dropped some measures earlier this year but kept others, including those related to terrorism.

Ereli said that Libya had take significant actions over the last nine months which led to the removal of “all critical elements of Libya's undeclared nuclear program.”

The White House said Libya also agreed to respond “in good faith” to court judgments and awards against it with respect to remaining cases of American victims of terrorism.

“We expect Libya to honor this commitment,” McClellan said.

Monday's step, however, did not constitute full normalization of relations with Libya.

“I would remind you that Libya still is on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, and is subject to sanctions pursuant to that,” Ereli said, noting that the US diplomatic representation in Libya was confined to only a liaison office at present.

“The issue of terrorism remains a concern,” he said, citing particularly concerns over a recent Libyan-linked reported assassination attempt against Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah.

“I would say that until these issues can be resolved and the world is convinced that Libya is fully and finally out of the terrorism game, relations will not be fully normalized,” Ereli said.

Nations in the US sponsors-of-terrorism list face various prohibitions, including sale of so-called dual-use equipment and technology, which finds applications in both civilian and military use, diplomatic sources said.

Libya | Business | |