Democratic Palestine : 16 (ص 6)
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- Democratic Palestine : 16 (ص 6)
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acquired control of a development company that plans to turn
the Italian island of Pantelleria into a tourist paradise.
Cloak and dagger stumped
The US intentions towards Libya were most frankly stated
by Secretary of State George Schultz during one of his staff
meetings: «We have to put Qaddafi in a box and close the lid.»
Despite the US intelligence community's having advised cau-
tion, the Reagan Administration has chosen an aggressive pol-
icy. Many a CIA plan has been formulated, trimmed to size and
discretely ‘leaked’ to the press. Whether or not this was inten-
tional, the US did hope that it would scare Libya into buckling
under to pressure. At the same time, this signalled to the west-
ern European states that the US meant business. Instead of
denying these ‘leaks’, one US official said that these plans
would go ahead anyway: «We went ahead with the world’s
most open covert operation against Nicaragua.» The US has
for many months studied and prepared military plans that were
said to be ‘defensive’ and of a ‘precautionary nature’. Another
official source said that the CIA had analyzed military options
and did a detailed study of military targets that could be hit in
Libya. A further development came in January 1986, when
military advisers sifted through a Defense Department con-
tingency list of bombing targets in Libya, ranging from govern-
ment facilities to anti-aircraft sites. Pentagon officials termed
the activity «prudent planning in case the president should ask
us to do something.»
On January 8th, the State Department released several
papers which were actually highly classified intelligence
reports cut down to size. One of these was entitled «Chronol-
ogy of Libyan Support for Terrorism, 1980-85.» It listed a total
of 58 incidents; the US was only mentioned in two of these. The
chronology lists 56 incidents in Europe, the Middle East and
Africa, that in almost every case were directed against Libyan
dissidents or anti-Qaddafi plotters. The report also stressed
Libya’s support for revolutionary movements in Latin America,
Be
UNITED KINGDOM NETHERLANDS
Exports $361 million Imports $366 million 7
Impor:s $187 million Exports $204 million
x = 3 Exports $885 million
a a
3 nae
SWITZERLAND |
Libya’s top trade
partners in Europe
ITALY
Imports $2.5 billion
Exports $1.8 billion
Imports $1.9 billion
WEST GERMANY
Imports $402 million
Exports $110 million
YUGOSLAVIA
Imports $407 million
Exports $225 million
ROMANIA
; te } Imports $311 million
re Exports $140 million
ws a
ROMANIA ‘
| GREECE
Imports $326 million
Exports $120 million
FRANCE
Imports $753 million
Exports $233 mittion
a oN
“| Imports $969 million
Exports $293 million “| TURKEY
“1 imports $655 million
Exports $155 million
ee
© 99% of Libya's export revenues
come from oil.
Libyan crude is of high grade and low
sulphur content, which is easy to refine.
® Western Europe, including
Scandinavia, imports a total of 8,58
million barrels per day. OPEC nations
supply 5.42 million barrels per day.
® Libya is the second largest OPEC
supplier to Western Europe at 864,000
barrels per day, behind Saudi Arabia at
876,000 barrels per day.
4
the Caribbean, Southeast Asia and the Philippines.
Another major CIA analysis classified ‘secret’ was a Spe-
cial National Intelligence Estimate of March 1985, titled
«Libya's Qaddafi: The Challenge to the United States and
Western Interests.» This title reflects exactly the US fear of
Libya’s growing influence. Libya is supporting those very
forces which western imperialism is spending millions to have
crushed by its reactionary allies, especially in the Middle East
and Africa. All reports, however, result in the same conclusion:
«Essentially Qaddafi is not controllable.» This reflects the col-
lective opinion of US intelligence agencies that diplomatic
pressure and economic sanctions would have little or no
impact. Reflecting this is a statement by Reagan in reference
to the new economic sanctions of February 1986: «If these
steps do not end Qaddafi's terrorism, | promise you that further
steps will be taken» - thereby leaving the door open to the milit-
ary option. Others were more skeptical, seeing no use in
economic measures or even the military option. The retired
Rear Admiral of the US Sixth Fleet, Eugene Caroll, in an inter-
view with The Guardian, February 5th, acknowledged that
«.,.Qaddafi isn't going to cry ‘uncle’ and | can’t see what favor-
able outcome can come» from US military resolve to intimidate
him.
Nevertheless, despite reservations on the part of CIA offi-
Cials and calls for restraint from Europe, the US increased its
aerial and electronic surveillance of Libya. The Sixth Fleet was
alerted. US Navy pilots on the Coral Sea aircraft carrier stood
by in Sigonella, Sicily. Britain’s crack Special Air Services
(SAS) regiment was alerted at Hereford, England, and
France’s quick reaction forces readied at bases in south
France. Crete was transformed into a US base. Thousands of
US troops arrived at Haifa port in occupied Palestine, aboard
an aircraft carrier, a guided missile cruiser and a destroyer,
while trigger-happy Zionist like Peres expressed eagerness to
hit Libya. ‘Israel’, however, is still suffering from the aftermath
of its intervention in Lebanon. The Zionist leaders cannot take
lightly Qaddafi’s warnings; they are not in a position to strike
Libya as they did the PLO headquarters in Tunis. This is espe-
Cially true due to the sticky situation that arose after the Zionists
forced a Libyan executive jet to land in ‘Israel’. (Although
Israeli officials claimed not to take Qaddafi seriously, the Israeli
Transport Ministry announced that an order had been issued to
all airlines arriving or leaving ‘Israel’, to change their flight
paths over the Mediterranean.)
Despite Reagan's ridiculous name-calling game, CIA esti-
mates continue to refer to Qaddafi as «a judicious political cal-
culator» who is «not living up to his madman image.» In any
case, estimates do converge on one point: that Qaddafi is a
threat to US and Western interests. CIA activities have con-
centrated on cutting Qaddafi down to size, indeed doing away
with him totally, if they could, by either breeding pro-western
substitutes for him, employing neighboring states against him,
and/or cutting off his connections with Europe.
The US and Europe
The US has pursued an unsuccessful campaign of sanc-
tions against Libya since 1981. Past efforts have been
thwarted by the major European industrial powers’ reluctance
to give up economic ties which include access to Libya's crude
oil, not to mention the billions of dollars worth of debts that
Libya would be relieved from paying if Europe embarked on a
drastic embargo. The largest purchasers of Libyan oil are Italy,
West Germany, Spain, France and Turkey - all NATO mem-
bers. Italy, Greece, France, West Germany, Britain and Japan - هو جزء من
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