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09 September 2008
Chronology of U.S.-Libyan Relations, 1786-2008
Released by State Department’s Office of the Historian
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[U.S. Department of State]
September 4, 2008
U.S. - LIBYAN RELATIONS, 1786-2008
A Chronology
1786 - February 17: The first meeting between representatives of the United States and the Barbary State of Tripoli took place in London. John Adams, the U.S. Minister to Great Britain, and Thomas Jefferson, the U.S. Minister to France, met with Abdrahaman, a Tripolitan special envoy to Great Britain.
1796 - November 4: The United States and Tripoli signed a Treaty of Peace and Friendship.
1797 - July 10: James Leander Cathcart was appointed as the first U.S. Consul to Tripoli. He arrived on April 5, 1799.
1801 - February 9: Having received no “presents” from the United States, and knowing that his neighbors the Bey of Tunis and Dey of Algiers did, Bey Youssef Qaramanli of Tripoli told U.S. Consul Cathcart that he would declare war on the United States unless he received a new treaty and tribute.
1801 - May 14: The Bey of Tripoli declared war on the United States and sent a squad of soldiers to cut down the U.S. Consulate’s flagpole. The First Barbary War began. Cathcart asked the Danish Consul General to represent U.S. interests, and departed for Italy.
1801 - May 20: President Thomas Jefferson ordered a four-ship U.S. Navy squadron, under the command of Commodore Richard Dale, to the Mediterranean Sea.
1801 - August 1: The first combat between U.S. and Tripolitan forces took place when the U.S.S. Enterprise defeated the Tripoli.
1801 - December 8: President Jefferson asked Congress for authority to use naval forces to protect American commerce in the Mediterranean Sea. Congress passed the “Act for the Protection of the Commerce and Seamen of the United States Against the Tripolitan Cruisers,” and it became law on February 6, 1802.
1805 - April 28: Supported by the U.S. Navy, a multi-national army led by William Eaton, the U.S. Navy Agent for the Barbary Regencies, captured the town of Derna. News of Eaton’s victory led the Bey of Tripoli to make peace.
1805 - June 4: The United States and Tripoli signed a Treaty of Peace and Amity.
1835 - May 28: The Ottoman Government deposed Bey Ali Qaramanli, the son of Youssef Qaramanli, ending a dynasty that had ruled Tripoli since 1711. Tripolitania became a vilayat (province) of the Ottoman Empire.
1911 - September 26: Italy issued an ultimatum to the Ottoman Empire that it must accept Italian military occupation of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica. Italy declared war on the Ottoman Empire on September 29. In November, Italy declared that it would annex Tripolitania and Cyrenaica. Italy occupied the coastal cities, but the conflict stalled. The fighting ended in October 1912 with a peace treaty, but neither side relinquished its claims.
1912 - November 1: The United States conformed to “de facto conditions” in Tripolitania and Cyrenaica (under Italian control), and Secretary of State Philander C. Knox placed the U.S. Consulate in Tripoli under the supervision of the U.S. Embassy in Rome. The act was not, however, a formal U.S. recognition of Italy’s de jure sovereignty over the two territories.
1914 - June 28: World War I began with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary by Bosnian Serb Gavrilo Princip.
1915 - April 26: In the secret Treaty of London, Italy agreed to join the Triple Entente (United Kingdom, France, and Russia) in exchange for Italian sovereignty over Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, as well as other territorial gains, including Tyrol, Trieste, and the Dodecanese islands.
1920 - October: In the Accord of al-Rajma, Italy granted Sayyid Idris al-Sanusi the title of Amir of Cyrenaica.
1922 - July 28: Native Tripolitan leaders offered Sayyid Idris the Amirate of Tripolitania. Idris accepted in November.
1922 - October: Benito Mussolini came to power in Italy. His Fascist government instituted stricter colonial policies and a re-conquest of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica to quell resistance to Italian rule. In December, Sayyid Idris went into exile in Cairo.
1934:Italy officially designated the provinces of Tripolitania, Cyrenaica, and Fezzan as Libya. Five years later (1939), Libya was declared part of metropolitan Italy.
1935 - April 24: The United States reopened its Consulate in Tripoli, after having closed it during World War I. It closed two years later.
1940 - September: Using Italian troops stationed in Libya, Mussolini ordered his forces to launch an attack on British-held Egypt. The British-led Allied counterattack Operation Compass defeated the Italians. To reinforce Italian forces, German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler sent General Erwin Rommel and the Afrika Korps to North Africa.
1942 - October-December: In the Second Battle of El-Alamein, Allied forces led by British Lieutenant General Bernard Montgomery defeated Rommel and the Afrika Korps. By early 1943, Nazi forces were driven from Libya, and it was placed under British and French military administration.
1943 - February 18: U.S. Army Air Force personnel arrived in Benghazi. By March 13, they established air bases at Benina, Lete, Solluch, and Berka. The 9th Bomber Command flew its first combat mission from Libyan bases against Naples on February 24. The bases around Benghazi were closed at the end of World War II.
1947 - February 10: As part of the peace settlement ending World War II, Italy renounced its colonies in Africa.
1947 - June 30: The United States Air Force established an air base at Tripoli, later named Wheelus Airfield.
1948 - June 6: The U.S. Consulate in Tripoli was reopened.
1949 - November 21: The United Nations General Assembly voted to grant independence to Libya, effective January 1, 1952. On December 10, the General Assembly elected Assistant Secretary General Adrian Pelt of The Netherlands as UN Commissioner in Libya, and provided Pelt with a ten-member advisory council, aptly titled the “Council of Ten.” Lewis Clark served as the U.S. representative to the council.
1950 - November 24: The United States announced that Libya would receive technical assistance under the Point Four Program.
1950 - December 2: The Libyan National Assembly proclaimed that the United Kingdom of Libya would be created and offered the throne to Sayyid Idris al-Sanusi. Two days later, the National Assembly created a committee to draft a constitution.
1951 - December 21: The United States and Libya signed an agreement that permitted the United States continued use of Wheelus Airfield. Libya’s desert climate made Wheelus a major training base for Air Force units stationed in Western Europe.
1951 - December 24: Libya declared its independence with King Idris I as head of state. The United States immediately recognized Libya and elevated its Consulate to a Legation.
1952 - February 7: Henry S. Villard of New York was appointed the first U.S. Minister to Libya, and he presented his credentials to King Idris I on March 6.
1953 - May 28: Secretary of State John Foster Dulles arrived in Tripoli, as the first U.S. Secretary of State to visit Libya. He met with Libyan Prime Minister Mahmoud al-Muntasir.
1954 - June 22: Libya’s first diplomatic representative to the United States, Minister Mansour El-Kikhya, presented his credentials to President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
1954 - September 25: The U.S. Legation in Tripoli was raised to Embassy status, and John L. Tappin of Maryland was appointed as the first U.S. Ambassador to Libya.
1955 - May 6: Saddiqh al-Muntasir, Libya’s first Ambassador to the United States, presented his credentials to President Eisenhower.
1955 - July 28: The United States and Libya signed several agreements for cooperative programs on agriculture, education, natural resources, and public health.
1957 - March 17-20: In the wake of the 1956 Suez Crisis, Ambassador James P. Richards, Special Assistant to President Eisenhower, visited Libya. His mission resulted from the President’s January 5 address to Congress, in which Eisenhower promised that the United States would defend countries in the Middle East against communist aggression and would supply development and security assistance as needed (the Eisenhower Doctrine). Richards made a second visit to Libya on May 4. A joint U.S.-Libyan communiqué announced that the United States was prepared to assist in a survey of Libyan development needs, development of broadcasting and telecommunications, assistance in education, electric power development, and domestic water supplies.
1957 - March: Vice President Richard M. Nixon visited Libya.
1957 - June 30: The United States and Libya signed a military assistance agreement, and a Military Assistance Advisory Group was later established in Libya.
1959 - April 9: Standard Oil of New Jersey discovered oil in Zelten. By 1961, Libya had 10 fields producing oil for export. By 1965, Libya was the sixth-largest oil exporting nation.
1960 - May 27: The United States supplied Libya with 30,000 tons of barley and 20,000 tons of wheat in response to a famine brought on by a severe drought. The following year, the United States provided 22,000 tons of grain for famine relief.
1962 - October 15-24: Libyan Crown Prince Hasan al-Rida al-Sanusi made an official visit to the United States, during which he met President John F. Kennedy.
1964 - April 29: Libya, the United States, and the United Kingdom began discussions about the future of U.S. and British military bases in Libya. The United States agreed in principle to withdraw from Wheelus Airfield at an unspecified date.
1967 - June 5-10: During the Six Day War, Libya maintained diplomatic relations with the United States; however, Libya was among five countries that suspended oil exports to the United States, Great Britain, and West Germany. Riots at the offices of foreign oil companies forced the U.S. Air Force to evacuate 7,095 U.S. and other foreign nationals to Europe.
1969 - September 1: A group of Libyan Army officers called the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) overthrew King Idris I and proclaimed a Libyan Arab Republic. The next day, the RCC announced that it would not interfere with foreign-owned property or foreign oil interests and that existing treaties would be respected. On September 6, the Department of State announced that the United States would maintain relations with the new government.
1969 - October 16: Chair of the Revolutionary Command Council, Lieutenant Colonel Mu’ammar al-Qadhafi, called for the “liquidation” of American and British bases in Libya. On November 19, he formally demanded the evacuation of Wheelus Airfield.
1970 - July 4: Libya nationalized the marketing interests of four foreign oil companies, including Esso Libya and Royal Dutch Shell.
1970 - June 11: The United States completed its withdrawal from Wheelus Airfield.
1971 - April 2: After concluding negotiations with foreign oil companies, Libya announced a five-year agreement that set the new price for a barrel of oil at $3.45, an increase of 92 cents per barrel.
1972 - February 5: The United States terminated agreements with Libya regarding military assistance, economic aid, technical cooperation, duty-free entry of relief supplies, and development assistance.
1972 - June 11: On the second anniversary of the evacuation of Wheelus Airfield, Colonel Qadhafi urged Muslims to fight the United States and Great Britain, and announced his support for black revolutionaries in the United States, revolutionaries in Ireland, and Arabs desiring to join the struggle to liberate Palestine. U.S. Ambassador Joseph Palmer Jr. and his British counterpart walked out in protest.
1972 - September 12: Five members of Black September who had died during the kidnapping and murder of 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team in Munich were buried in Libya.
1973 - April 15: Qadhafi announced the start of a “cultural revolution to destroy imported ideologies, whether they are Eastern or Western.” “People’s committees” were established to oversee all institutions. One month later (May 14), Qadhafi detailed the “Third Universal Theory,” which was posited as an alternative to capitalism and communism.
1973 - August 11-September 1: The Government of Libya announced on August 11 that it had nationalized 51 percent of Occidental Petroleum. On August 16, it announced that it had forced the Oasis Oil Company (a consortium of Royal Dutch Shell and the U.S. companies Continental, Marathon, and Amerada Hess) to accept a similar arrangement. On September 1, the Government of Libya announced that it had nationalized 51percent of all remaining foreign oil companies. Qadhafi described nationalization as “a present to the Libyan people” on the fourth anniversary of the revolution.
1973 - October 11: Libya claimed control of the Gulf of Sidra south of 32 degrees, 30 minutes north latitude. The United States did not recognize Libya’s claim.
1973 - October 19: President Richard M. Nixon announced a $2.2 billion military aid program for Israel during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War. Libya responded by placing an embargo on all oil exports to the United States. Saudi Arabia and other Arab oil producing states followed Libya’s action, initiating the 1973 - 1974 oil embargo.
1974 - February 11: Libya nationalized the Texaco, California Asiatic, and Libyan American oil companies. Royal Dutch Shell was nationalized on March 30.
1975 - September 17: Colonel Qadhafi published the first of several essays that became The Green Book, which detailed his ideology as first expressed in the Third Universal Theory.
1977 - March 2: Libya changed its official name to the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriyya (“state of the masses”).
1978 - February 21: Citing Libya’s support for international terrorism, the U.S. Department of State recommended denying export licenses for two Boeing 727s ordered by Libyan Arab Airlines. Licenses were also denied for spare parts for Libyan C-130s, and the U.S. company Lockheed was denied permission to do on-site aircraft maintenance.
1978 - October 4: Libya signed the Hague Convention on Hijacking and afterwards agreed to provide written assurances that the Boeing 727s ordered by Libyan Arab Airlines would not be used for military purposes. On November 2, after consultation with Congress, the Departments of State and Commerce approved the export licenses.
1978 - Autumn: An “Arab-American dialogue” involving visits to Libya by various private U.S. citizens began. One such group included President Jimmy Carter’s brother, Billy.
1979 - January: Ambassador Anthony C. E. Quainton, Director of the Department of State’s Office for Combating Terrorism, met with Libya’s Foreign Secretary in Tripoli. Quainton said that Libya needed to take a different attitude toward terrorism before U.S.-Libyan relations could improve.
1979 - April 15: The New York Times reported that Billy Carter had admitted that Libya funded his autumn 1978 visit. He denied having made any business deals with Qadhafi, but hoped that his visit would promote U.S.-Libyan trade. Billy Carter made another visit to Libya in September for the tenth anniversary of Qadhafi’s coup.
1979 - September 2: Libya renamed its embassies “Libyan People’s Bureaus.”
1979 - October 3: Secretary of State Cyrus Vance met with Libyan Foreign Secretary Turayki at the UN General Assembly.
1979 - November 8: Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs David D. Newsom met with Libya’s UN Ambassador Mansur Rashid al-Kikhya, and urged that Libya take a stand against Iran’s seizure of the U.S. Embassy and its staff. Later, at an Arab League Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Tunis, Libyan Foreign Secretary Turayki called for an Arab boycott in response to the United States’ freezing of Iranian assets.
1979 - November 22: Libya issued a “helpful” statement about the U.S. hostages in Iran. One week later (November 29), Qadhafi sent a message to President Carter, offering to help secure the hostages’ release
1979 - December 2: A mob demonstrating Libya’s solidarity with the Iranian Revolution attacked and burned the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli. Embassy operations were suspended, and Chargé d’Affaires William L. Eagleton returned to Washington. The United States asked Libya to accept responsibility for failing to protect the Embassy, to agree to provide compensation for damages, and to give assurances for the safety of American citizens in Libya. Eagleton returned to Tripoli on December 31.
1979 - December 22: The United States designated Libya as a state sponsor of terrorism.
1980 - February 7: After a mob attacked the French Embassy in Tripoli, the U.S. Embassy reduced its staff to two diplomats and continued its suspension of operations. Chargé Eagleton was recalled the next day.
1980 - May 2: Following a campaign by the Government of Libya to assassinate dissidents overseas, the United States declared four Libyan diplomats persona non grata. The United States recalled its two diplomats from Libya, and described its closure of the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli as temporary. The Libyan People’s Bureau in Washington remained open.
1980 - July 14: Billy Carter registered with the U.S. Department of Justice as a Libyan agent. He admitted to receiving $220,000 from the Government of Libya during 1980, but denied having engaged in any recent activities on Libya’s behalf. The U.S. Senate formed a subcommittee to investigate Carter’s activities.
1980 - November 1: The Senate subcommittee released its report on Billy Carter’s activities. The report found that no illegal or unethical activities had taken place, but it described Carter’s activities as “contrary to the interests of the President and the United States.”
1981 - May 6: Citing Libyan support for international terrorism and “disregard for the norms of international behavior,” the United States ordered Libya to close its People’s Bureau in Washington. Belgium became the protecting power for U.S. interests in Libya.
1981 - August 19: Two Libyan Su-22 fighters attacked two U.S. Navy F-14 fighters from the U.S.S. Nimitz over the Gulf of Sidra. The Libyan aircraft were shot down. The incident took place 60 nautical miles from the Libyan coast during a scheduled U.S. naval exercise.
1981 - October 21: The U.S. Senate passed a resolution condemning Libya’s support for international terrorism and urging President Ronald Reagan to conduct “an immediate review of concrete steps” to be taken in response to Libya’s actions.
1981 - December: Security around President Reagan and senior U.S. officials was increased after reports that Libya had sent assassination squads to the United States.
1982 - March 4: Colonel Qadhafi warned of “war in the full sense of the word” if the United States entered the Gulf of Sidra. On March 16, Secretary of the Navy John Lehman announced that the Sixth Fleet would hold exercises there within the next six months.
1982 - March 10: The United States announced a ban on imports of Libyan oil. Licenses were required for all exports to Libya, except food, agricultural produces, and medical supplies. Licenses were denied for high technology, items on the commodity control list, as well as oil and gas technology and equipment of U.S. origin.
1984 - March 16: A Tu-22 bomber believed to be Libyan attacked Omdurman, Sudan. On March 19, the United States sent two AWACS aircraft to Egypt and Sudan at the two countries’ requests. Sudan requested a meeting of the UN Security Council.
1984 - March 27: At a UN Security Council meeting, U.S. Ambassador Jeane J. Kirkpatrick called Libya “a master of violence,” citing the attack on Sudan and Libya’s continuing support for terrorists in Europe, the Far East, and Latin America.
1984 - April 22: The United States supported the United Kingdom after the latter broke relations with Libya. The British severance of relations because of Libya’s refusal to cooperate with an inquiry into gunshots fired from the Libyan Embassy that killed British police officer Yvonne Fletcher and wounded 11 demonstrators.
1984 - August 31: The United States forbade members of Libya’s mission to the United Nations from traveling outside New York City without special permission.
1984 - September 1: Colonel Qadhafi announced that Libya would send troops and arms to support Nicaragua’s Sandinista government.
1985 - July 8: President Reagan spoke of a “confederation of terrorist states” that was “engaged in war against the government of the United States.” The confederation was said to include Libya, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Nicaragua.
1986 - January 7: President Reagan imposed economic sanctions on Libya following the December 17 terrorist attacks on the Rome and Vienna airports. Libya had supported and praised the attacks, which were conducted by the Abu Nidal Organization. The sanctions on Libya included a ban on imports and exports (except food, clothing, and medical supplies), travel to or from Libya, and loans and credits to Libya. Libyan assets in the United States were frozen the next day.
1986 - March 24: A Libyan base at Sirte fired six surface-to-air missiles at U.S. Navy aircraft conducting exercises in the Gulf of Sidra. In response, U.S. Navy aircraft sank two Libyan patrol craft and attacked the missile base in Sirte.
1986 - April 5: A bomb exploded in the LaBelle Discotheque in West Berlin, killing 3 people and wounding 230. Two of the dead and 50 of the wounded were U.S. military personnel. The U.S. Government later charged that the Libyan Government and its People’s Bureau in East Berlin were involved in the planning and execution of the attack.
1986 - April 9: During a press conference, President Reagan called Colonel Qadhafi “a mad dog” and warned that “if and when we can specifically identify someone responsible for one of these acts, we will respond.” Qadhafi denied any Libyan role in the West Berlin bombing and threatened to attack U.S. interests worldwide if the United States attacked Libya.
1986 - April 15: In Operation El Dorado Canyon, Air Force FB-111s based in England, and Navy A-6 and A-7 bombers from the U.S.S. America and the U.S.S. Coral Sea, attacked military and terrorist-related targets in Tripoli and Benghazi. One FB-111 and its crew of two were lost. There were at least 36 Libyan fatalities, one of whom was Qadhafi’s adopted daughter. Libya responded by firing missiles at a U.S. Coast Guard station on Lampedusa Island, but none of the missiles hit the island.
1986 - May 5: During the Economic Summit in Tokyo, the G-7 heads of state identified Libya as a state-sponsor of terrorism. They called for a ban on exporting arms to states sponsoring or supporting terrorism, denial of entry to persons suspected of or involved in terrorist activities, improved extradition procedures, and closer cooperation between police and security organizations. Secretary of the Treasury James A. Baker III announced after the G-7 Economic Summit in Tokyo that U.S. oil companies would be ordered to leave Libya. The companies terminated their operations by June 30.
1986 - May 20: William A. Wilson, U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, resigned after reports that he made unauthorized visits to Libya. Wilson later admitted that he visited Libya in November 1985, but denied that he made any subsequent visits.
1987 - April 14: The New York Times published an interview with Colonel Qadhafi, during which he expressed hope for a rapprochement with the United States.
1987 - December 15: President Reagan notified Congress that a state of national emergency continued to exist with respect to Libya.
1988 - September 14: The Department of State asserted that Libya was “on the verge of full-scale production” of chemical weapons in a factory at Rabta.
1988 - December 21: Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people. Investigators concluded that the bomb was in a suitcase that had traveled from Malta to Frankfurt.
1989 - January 9: Libyan Foreign Minister Jadallah Azouz al-Talhi denied U.S. accusations that his country was developing chemical weapons. On January 13 and 18, the West German Government accused two companies of violating export laws when they took part in building a chemical factory in Rabta.
1989- January 18: The Department of State issued a report that stated that Libya had used “surrogate terrorist groups” to attack Western interests. The report estimated that Libya had supported at least one terrorist attack per month since April 1986. Cuba and Panama were said to be providing Libya with bases of operation in the Western Hemisphere.
1989 - December 29: The United States rejected a Libyan proposal for international inspection of the Rabta chemical plant as inadequate.
1990 - March 15: Libyan authorities reported that a fire had caused extensive damage to the Rabta chemical plant, and they suspected U.S., Israeli, or West German sabotage. President George H. W. Bush denied any U.S. involvement. In April, film footage supplied by a French commercial satellite firm showed that the reported fire was a hoax.
1991 - November 13: British authorities indicted Libyan intelligence agents Abdelbaset Ali Mohammed al-Megrahi and Al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah for the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. Libya denied any involvement and called for a neutral international investigation. On November 18, Libya refused a British request for the suspects’ extradition, and announced that it would conduct its own investigation.
1992 - January 21: The UN Security Council adopted Resolution 731, demanding that Libya extradite the suspects in the Pan Am 103 bombing to the United States or Great Britain, or face economic sanctions. Resolution 731 also demanded that Libya cooperate with a French inquiry into the 1989 bombing of a UTA airliner in northern Niger.
1992 - February 12: The Government of Libya rejected Resolution 731 and offered to try the Pan Am 103 suspects in Libya. Libya also offered to allow French investigators to question four suspects in the UTA bombing. The United States, Great Britain, and France rejected the Libyan response.
1992 - March 31: The UN Security Council adopted Resolution 748, calling on Libya to comply with Resolution 731 by April 15 or face mandatory sanctions that included denial of facilities to aircraft traveling to or from Libya, suspension of arms supplies, withdrawal of military advisers, and reduction in diplomatic staffs. The resolution also called on Libya to demonstrate that it had ceased to sponsor terrorist activities. The sanctions went into effect after Libya failed to comply.
1992 - May 14: The Government of Libya announced that it would end its connections with terrorist groups, invite UN representatives to verify that it had done so, and would no longer allow its territory or citizens to be used for “terrorist acts.”
1992 - June 23: Libya’s General People’s Council agreed that the Pan Am 103 suspects could be tried abroad in a “fair and just” court.
1992 - November 27: The United States, Great Britain, and France warned Libya that sanctions would be made “even more effective” unless the Pan Am 103 suspects were extradited.
1993 - February 19: The New York Times reported that Libya was building an underground chemical weapons factory disguised as a water project in the Tarhunah Mountains. Libya denied the report.
1993 - April 16: In an interview with the International Herald Tribune, Qadhafi said that he was ready to seek a more conciliatory approach to the United States, describing President Bill Clinton as “the savior of the new world.” Qadhafi also condemned Islamic militants as “mad dogs” and “terrorists.”
1993 - August 13: The United States, Great Britain, and France announced that they would seek stricter economic sanctions against Libya from the UN Security Council if Libya failed to comply with Resolution 731 by October 1. The stricter sanctions would apply to oil, finance, and technology. Libya rejected the October 1 deadline, but expressed willingness to discuss a venue for the trial of the Pan Am 103 suspects.
1993 - November 11: The UN Security Council unanimously approved Resolution 883, which froze Libya’s foreign assets, banned sales of equipment for its petroleum industry, and extended restrictions on its aviation industry. The sanctions took effect on December 1.
1994 - January 22: Speaking before the General People’s Congress, Colonel Qadhafi said that The Hague would be “an appropriate place” to try the Pan Am 103 suspects. He described President Clinton as “a good man and a man of peace” who was a captive of the CIA.
1995 - March 23: The FBI placed the Pan Am 103 suspects on its “Ten Most Wanted” list and offered a reward of $4 million for their capture.
1996 - January 23: Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan visited Libya, and Colonel Qadhafi offered him $1 billion to fund political activities by U.S. Muslims. During a second visit (August 31-September 1), Farrakhan received the $250,000 Qadhafi International Human Rights Prize. On August 28, the Treasury Department said that U.S. sanctions prevented Farrakhan from accepting either sum. Farrakhan visited Libya again on January 5, 1997.
1996 - August 5: President William J. Clinton signed into law the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act, which imposed sanctions on foreign companies that invested over $40 million a year in Libya’s petroleum industry, or sold weapons, aviation or oil equipment to Libya.
1997 - June 9: Libya’s UN Mission sent a letter to the families of the Pan Am 103 victims, and it expressed Libya’s willingness to begin negotiations that would lead to the trial of the two suspects. One organization of family members called the letter “a propaganda ploy.”
1998 - February 27: The International Court of Justice ruled that it had jurisdiction over the dispute between Libya and the United States and United Kingdom.
1998 - August 24: The United States and Great Britain proposed that the Pan Am 103 suspects be tried in The Netherlands, at The Hague, by Scottish judges under Scottish law.
1998 - August 27: The UN Security Council approved Resolution 1192, which would suspend sanctions against Libya if it accepted the U.S.-British proposal. The Council reserved the right to impose stricter sanctions if Libya did not comply. During a CNN interview, Qadhafi accepted the U.S.-British proposal provided that there were no “hidden tricks.”
1998 - September 29: Addressing the UN General Assembly, Libyan Permanent Representative Abuzed Omar Dorda asked that the Pan Am 103 suspects be allowed to serve their prison terms in The Netherlands or Libya if convicted.
1998 - November 25: The Government of Libya imprisoned three senior officials in its security services who were thought to be involved with the Pan Am 103 bombing.
1999 - February 20: Secretary of State Madeleine Albright told reporters that the United States would seek additional UN sanctions against Libya if an agreement was not reached about the surrender of the Pan Am 103 suspects within 30 days.
1999 - March 23: Colonel Qadhafi announced that the Pan Am 103 suspects would be transferred to The Netherlands for trial. South African President Nelson Mandela had assured Qadhafi that the trial would be fair and that outside observers would oversee prison conditions. The suspects were transferred to The Hague for trial on April 5.
1999 - April 6: The UN Security Council approved Resolution 1192, indefinitely suspending economic sanctions against Libya.
2000 - March 26: Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Maura Harty led a U.S. mission to Libya to discuss the protection of expatriate U.S. citizens there. This was the first such mission since 1981.
2000 - May 3: The Pan Am 103 trial resumed, and the Libyan suspects were charged with conspiracy to murder, murder, and violation of the 1982 Aviation Security Act. The suspects pled not guilty.
2001 - January 31: The Scottish judges passed verdicts in the Pan Am 103 case. Abdel-Basset al-Meghrabi was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. Al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah was acquitted. A Libyan spokesman said that his government “respected” the outcome and expected a prompt end to UN sanctions. U.S. and British officials said that Libya would first have to accept responsibility for the bombing and to compensate the victims’ families.
2001 - August 3: President George W. Bush signed into law a five-year extension of the 1996 Iran and Libya Sanctions Act.
2001 - September 11: Members of al-Qaeda, led by Usama bin Laden, conducted simultaneous attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
2001 - October 4: U.S. and British officials met with Libyan officials in London to secure compliance with UN Security Council resolutions concerning Libyan support for international terrorism. Libyan officials reportedly supplied information about Libyans involved with al-Qaeda.
2002 - May 30: Lawyers representing families of the Pan Am 103 victims announced that Libya had agreed to pay $2.7 billion. The U.S. Department of State said that sanctions would remain in place, and Libya denied having made such an agreement.
2002 - August 31: Colonel Qadhafi announced the arrest of several suspected al-Qaeda members. He said that Libya was no longer a “rogue state” and had now “integrated” its foreign policy with that of the African Union.
2003 - April 29: After negotiations between the Government of Libya and lawyers representing the Pan Am 103 victims’ families, Secretary for Foreign Liaison and International Cooperation Abdel Rahman Mohammed Shalgam announced that Libya would accept “civil responsibility” for the bombing, after which $10 million would be paid to each family in three installments. In return, sanctions would be lifted after the first payment, and Libya would be removed from the list of states supporting terrorism after the last payment.
2003 - August 15: In a letter to the UN Security Council, the Government of Libya accepted responsibility for its role in the Pan Am 103 bombing, announced the establishment of an escrow account in a Swiss bank for the victims’ families, and promised that it would renounce terrorism. On August 18, representatives of the United States and the United Kingdom told the Security Council that they were prepared to end sanctions against Libya.
2003 - September 12: The UN Security Council lifted its sanctions against Libya, opening the way for Pan Am 103 families to receive over $1 billion from the escrow account.
2003 - December 19: President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that Libya had agreed to suspend its programs to develop ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction. They also announced that Colonel Qadhafi had agreed to admit international inspectors to oversee their removal and destruction. The first inspectors, led by the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohamed el-Baradei, arrived in Libya on December 27.
2004 - January 14: Libya ratified the 1996 Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
2004 - January 20: The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced that an agreement was reached by which U.S. and British officials would supervise the dismantling of Libya’s nuclear weapons program.
2004 - February 4: Libya signed the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention, which outlaws the production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons.
2004 - February 8: The United States opened an Interests Section at the Belgian Embassy in Tripoli. The Interests Section was upgraded to a Liaison Office on June 28.
2004 - February 26: The United States ended its restrictions on travel to Libya, permitted U.S. oil companies with previous holdings in Libya to negotiate the terms of re-entry, and allowed medical and educational exchange programs. It invited Libya to open an Interests Section in Washington.
2004 - March 6: Libya sent a shipload of ballistic missiles, launchers, and nuclear technology to the United States for disposition. Libya also admitted that it produced over 20 tons of mustard gas, tested it, and put it into bombs during the 1980s.
2004 - March 10: Libya signed the Additional Protocol of the IAEA, allowing the IAEA to conduct surprise inspections of its nuclear facilities.
2004 - March 23-24: Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs William Burns visited Libya to discuss future steps toward normalization of relations.
2004 - September 20: President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13357, terminating economic sanctions against Libya, releasing $1 billion in frozen Libyan assets, and authorizing the resumption of airline service between the two countries. The national emergency regarding Libya was terminated.
2005 - August 21: After a 2-day visit to Libya, Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that U.S.-Libyan relations had made a “major and progressive” improvement. He said that Colonel Qadhafi hoped that President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice might visit Libya.
2005 - September 17: During a meeting at the UN General Assembly, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Libyan Foreign Minister Abdel Rahman Shalgam, who reaffirmed his country’s renunciation of terrorism.
2006 - March 8: Assistant Secretary for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer visited Libya to discuss efforts to achieve a political solution in Darfur.
2006 - May 15: Secretary of State Rice announced that the United States was restoring relations with Libya and planned to remove Libya from the list of states sponsoring terrorism.
2006 - May 31: The United States and Libya upgraded their Liaison Offices to full Embassies.
2006 - June 30: The United States formally rescinded Libya’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism.
2006 - July 10-13: Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky led a U.S. delegation to Tripoli to discuss cooperation in science, health, technology, and environmental issues.
2006 - July 15-17: Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs C. David Welch visited Tripoli and met with Foreign Minister Shalgam to discuss bilateral and regional issues.
2007 - March 8-10: Andrew Natsios, Presidential Special Envoy for Sudan, visited Libya to discuss efforts to settle the Darfur crisis.
2007 - April 17-18: Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte visited Libya and met with Foreign Minister Shalgam to discuss Darfur and other regional issues.
2007 - September 26: Secretary Rice met with Libyan Foreign Minister Shalgam at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel during a meeting of the UN General Assembly.
2007 - October 16: With no opposition from the United States, Libya was elected to a 2-year term on the UN Security Council.
2008 - August 4: President George W. Bush signed into law the Libyan Claims Resolution Act. The law states that when the Secretary of State certifies that the United States has received sufficient funds to pay the Pan Am 103 and La Belle Discotheque settlements and to provide fair compensation for American deaths and physical injuries in other cases against Libya, Libya’s immunity from terrorism-related court actions will be restored.
2008 - August 14: The United States and Libya signed the comprehensive claims settlement agreement. The agreement provides for rapid recovery of fair compensation for American nationals with terrorism-related claims against Libya, and addresses Libyan claims arising from previous U.S. military actions.
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