South Africa Defends Refusal to Unfreeze Libyan Assets

With the Gaddafi regime on the run, the US proposed that the UN Security Council release Libya’s assets to the nation’s Transitional Council. South Africa has balked, approving humanitarian assistance while insisting on prior official UN recognition of the transitional council. “The government of South Africa condemns any form of violence and the doctrine of imposed regime change," said one spokesman. South Africa had approved of the resolution to protect Libya’s civilians, which prompted criticism from South Africans who supported an African rather than international intervention. Appreciation lingers in South Africa for Muammar Gaddafi’s opposition to South Africa’s apartheid, explains David Smith in the Guardian. Gaddafi also gained influence by investing in projects throughout Africa. Analysts anticipate that the transitional council will devote $1.5 billion in frozen assets and future oil revenues to Libya’s population of 6.5 million. South African leaders had not prepared for Gaddafi’s ouster, Smith notes, and that presents a foreign-policy crisis at home. – YaleGlobal