The foreign relations of Libya under Muammar Gaddafi (1969–2011) underwent much fluctuation and change. They were marked by severe tension with the West and by other national policies in the Middle East and Africa,including the Libyan government's financial and military support for numerous paramilitary and rebel groups.
The United States Air Force,Navy,and Marine Corps carried out air strikes,code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon,against Libya on 15 April 1986 in retaliation for the West Berlin discotheque bombing ten days earlier,which U.S. President Ronald Reagan blamed on Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. There were 40 reported Libyan casualties;one U.S. plane was shot down. One of the claimed Libyan deaths was of a baby girl,reported to be Gaddafi's daughter,Hana Gaddafi. However,there are doubts as to whether she was really killed,or whether she truly existed.
UTA Flight 772 was a scheduled international passenger flight of the French airline Union de Transports Aériens (UTA) operating from Brazzaville in the People's Republic of the Congo,via N'Djamena in Chad,to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris,France,which crashed into the Ténérédesert near Bilma,Niger,on 19 September 1989 with the loss of all 170 people on board,after an in-flight explosion caused by a suitcase bomb. It is the deadliest aviation incident to occur in Niger.
On 5 April 1986,three people were killed and 229 injured when La Belle discothèque was bombed in the Friedenau locality of West Berlin. The entertainment venue was commonly frequented by United States soldiers;two of the dead and 79 of the injured were Americans.
Saif al-Islam Muammar al-Gaddafi is a Libyan political figure. He is the second son of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his second wife Safia Farkash. He was a part of his father's inner circle,performing public relations and diplomatic roles on his behalf. He publicly turned down his father's offer of the country's second highest post and held no official government position. According to United States Department of State officials in Tripoli,during his father's reign,he was the second most widely recognized person in Libya,being at times the de facto prime minister,and was mentioned as a possible successor,though he rejected this. An arrest warrant was issued for him on 27 June 2011 by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for charges of crimes against humanity against the Libyan people,for killing and persecuting civilians,under Articles 7(1)(a) and 7(1)(h) of the Rome statute. He denied the charges.
Muammar Gaddafi became the de facto leader of Libya on 1 September 1969 after leading a group of young Libyan Army officers against King Idris I in a bloodless coup d'état. After the king had fled the country,the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) headed by Gaddafi abolished the monarchy and the old constitution and established the Libyan Arab Republic,with the motto "freedom,socialism and unity". The name of Libya was changed several times during Gaddafi's tenure as leader. From 1969 to 1977,the name was the Libyan Arab Republic. In 1977,the name was changed to Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. Jamahiriya was a term coined by Gaddafi,usually translated as "state of the masses". The country was renamed again in 1986 as the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya,after the United States bombing that year.
Pan Am Flight 103 (PA103/PAA103) was a regularly scheduled Pan Am transatlantic flight from Frankfurt to Detroit via a stopover in London and another in New York City. The transatlantic leg of the route was operated by Clipper Maid of the Seas,a Boeing 747 registered N739PA. Shortly after 19:00 on 21 December 1988,while the aircraft was in flight over the Scottish town of Lockerbie,it was destroyed by a bomb,killing all 243 passengers and 16 crew in what became known as the Lockerbie bombing. Large sections of the aircraft crashed in a residential street in Lockerbie,killing 11 residents. With a total of 270 fatalities,it is the deadliest terrorist attack in the history of the United Kingdom.
The Libyan–Sudanese relations refers to the long historical relations between Libya and Sudan,both are Arab countries.
Mansour Rashid Kikhia was the Libyan Minister of Foreign Affairs (1972–1973),Libyan Ambassador to the United Nations,Permanent Libyan Representative to the United Nations (1975–1980),and later an opposition figure to Libya's leader Muammar Gaddafi,and human rights activist.
Libya–United States relations are the bilateral relations between the State of Libya and the United States of America. Relations are today cordial and cooperative,with particularly strong security cooperation only after the 2012 attack on the US liaison office or mission in Benghazi. Furthermore,a Gallup poll conducted in March and April 2012 found that Libyans had "among the highest approval" of US leadership in the entire Middle East and North Africa region.
Libya–Russia relations are the bilateral relations between the State of Libya and the Russian Federation. Russia has an embassy in Tripoli,with Libya having an embassy in Moscow. Diplomatic contact between Russia and Libya has generally been close and productive,seeing as both countries have had and continue to see volatile relations with the United States. Former Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi was a close ally of the Soviet Union,despite his country's membership in the Non-Aligned Movement. Russia also regards Libya as one of its strongest allies in the Arab world,and has supported stabilization of the country following the aftermath of the Libyan Civil War. After the outbreak of new conflict,Russia has primarily backed the Tobruk-based House of Representatives over the UN-backed Government of National Accord and various other factions.
Franco-Libyan relations are the relations between Libya and France. For the most part,their historical relations are complicated. Libya maintains its embassy in Paris. France also has an embassy in Tripoli.
Belarus and Libya established diplomatic relations in 1992. Belarus has an embassy in Tripoli. Libya has an embassy in Minsk.
After the neighboring countries of Egypt and Libya both gained independence in the early 1950s,Egypt–Libya relations were initially cooperative. Libya assisted Egypt in the 1973 Arab-Israeli War. Later,tensions arose due to Egypt's rapprochement with the west. Following the 1977 Egyptian–Libyan War,relations were suspended for twelve years. However,since 1989 relations have steadily improved. With the progressive lifting of UN and US sanctions on Libya from 2003 to 2008,the two countries have been working together to jointly develop their oil and natural gas industries.
Relations between Libya and the United Kingdom were initially close and positive after the British Armed Forces helped rebel forces to topple Muammar Gaddafi's regime in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. British officials have visited Libya several times since then,including two visits by Prime Minister David Cameron on which large crowds turned out to welcome him. The British Armed Forces are also helping to train Libya's National Army as part of wider cooperation on security matters. Security conditions have deteriorated since 2014,when the United Kingdom suspended operations from their embassy in Tripoli,into a second civil war. In June 2022,the United Kingdom re-opened its embassy in Tripoli.
The international reactions to the Libyan Civil War were the responses to the series of protests and military confrontations occurring in Libya against the government of Libya and its de facto head of state Muammar Gaddafi.
The Libya–Philippines relations refers to the bilateral relationship between Libya and the Republic of the Philippines. Libya has an embassy in Manila and the Philippines has an embassy in Tripoli.
The following lists events that happened during 2011 in Libya.
Ireland–Libya relations began in 1977. Ireland is accredited to Libya from its embassy in Rome,Italy after closing the embassy in Tripoli due to civil war. Libya is accredited to Ireland from its embassy in London,United Kingdom.
