Libya: A Country in Transition Seeking to Assert its Influence

摘要

Libya is an oil rich, lesser developed, Arab, Islamic fundamentalist country undergoing modernization and vying to assert its influence on world affairs. Because of its geographic location and economic wealth it is a key player in both the Arab and African worlds. Since the Libyan revolution brought Colonel Muammar A1-Qadhaafi to power in September 1969, Libya has pursued a policy of pan-Arab/Islamic nationalism through a diplomacy of foreign interference in Africa and in the Arab world. It has been a diplomacy of subversion and unprecedented obstruction to US national strategic interests in the Middle Eastern and African region. Qadhaafi through the use of oil revenues has actively supported international terrosim as an instrument of his policy. This paper is a country study of Libya, first briefly recounting Libya's history up until the overthrow of the monarchy in 1969, and then examining the political, economic, social and defense systems that have evolved since then with emphasis on their significance in terms of present Libya's internal development and projection of influence in the international arena. Analysis will assess the available evidence in each of these four areas and present conclusions which should prove helpful in any assessment of US policy towards Libya.