Russia circulates draft resolution on Libya in UN

PanARMENIAN.Net - Russia is pressing for a UN resolution aimed at keeping thousands of shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles purchased by former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi from getting into the hands of armed groups and terrorists, AP reports.

Diplomats said Wednesday, October 19, that Russia has circulated a draft resolution to the four other permanent members of the Security Council highlighting the problem of missiles that are unaccounted for following fighting that toppled Gadhafi.

It calls for effective measures to prevent the proliferation of these missiles, the diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the draft has not been made public.

Andrew Shapiro, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, said last Friday that Libya was believed to have about 20,000 such missiles in its arsenals before civil war began in March. Diplomats said Russia was a supplier of these missiles.

He said terrorist groups have expressed interest in obtaining some of the missiles, which "could pose a threat to civil aviation."

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with the leader of Libya's Transitional National Council, Mahmoud Jibril, in Tripoli on Tuesday and offered about $11 million in additional U.S. aid, boosting Washington's contribution since the uprising against Gadhafi began to roughly $135 million.

Some $10 million of the new money will go toward finding and destroying the Gadhafi-era shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles known as Man-Portable Air-Defense Systems or MANPAD, boosting Washington's contribution to $40 million since the former rebels began making major military progress, according to U.S. officials. The State Department already has sent 14 weapons experts to Libya and is looking for other countries to contribute to the effort.

Several UN diplomats said they support the aim of the Russian resolution but want to ensure that it has the support of the Transitional National Council. They also want to find out why the resolution was drafted under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which is militarily enforceable, when it is a political resolution that doesn't mandate any specific actions.