Wednesday 23 March 2011

US imposes additional sanctions on Libya's NOC

The US has imposed additional sanctions on Libya's National Oil Corporation's (NOC)14 subsidiaries in a bid to increase the pressure on Colonel Mu'ammar Qadhafi.

According to the director of the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, Adam Szubin, the NOC and its subsidiaries have been a “a primary funding source” for the Libyan government.

Szubin also added: “Consistent with the UN Security Council Resolution 1973, all governments should block the National Oil Corporation's assets and ensure that Qadhafi cannot use this network of companies to support his activities.”

This latest move follows a number of other attempts to stop Qadhafi, including the freezing of more than $32 billion in government assets, personal as well as those of his family, senior government officials and related companies.

The US Treasury Department said it would continue monitoring the corporation's activities, positing that should the corporation's subsidiaries “come under different ownership and control”, it may consider authorising deals.

Late on Tuesday [22nd March] Qadhafi made his first television appearance since coalition forces began bombing targets in an effort to enforce a no-fly zone. The Leader remained defiant, saying: “Long live Islam everywhere. All Islamic armies must take part in the battle, all free [people] must take part in the battle…We will be victorious in the end. In the short term, we will beat them. In the long term, we will beat them."

Sources: Upstream, RTT News, Sify News

For more news and expert analysis about Libya, please see Libya Focus and Libya Politics & Security.

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