Deal struck to release $1.5bn funds

THE United States and South Africa struck a deal yesterday to allow the release of $1.5 billion (€1bn) in frozen Libya funds for humanitarian aid and other civilian needs, UN diplomats said.

UN Security Council diplomats said the agreement would enable the funds to be released without a vote by the council on a US draft resolution that Washington submitted on Wednesday in response to South Africa blocking a US request to disburse the money in the UN Libya sanctions committee.

The South African delegation said it did not support funds going directly to the Libyan rebel government, the Transitional National Council (TNC), which the African Union has not recognised. Pretoria insisted that there be no mention to the TNC in the official request for the release of the funds.

US Deputy UN Ambassador Rosemary DiCarlo told reporters the South Africans “are lifting their hold now.”

“The council has reached consensus on the package of $1.5bn,” she said, adding that the US was “very pleased with the outcome.”

A spokeswoman for the South African UN mission, however, said her delegation had told the US that Pretoria would withdraw its objection “as long as there is no reference whatsoever to ... the TNC.”

“Because if it’s TNC, then it means that we are agreeing as the 15 collective council members to say yes to the TNC and we have not all recognised it,” she told reporters.

Diplomats said the TNC would be involved in deciding how to use the money, even though the request no longer refers to the TNC specifically.

The unfreezing of the funds was expected to become official late last night, diplomats said.