Newsletter No. 360
News-Analysis
August 19, 2006

 

JAPANESE CABINET MINISTER MEETS MUAMMAR QADHAFI

On the 16th, Japan’s Minister of Science and Technology, Iwao Matsuda, became the first sitting cabinet minister to visit Libya and meet with Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi. They met in Sabha, about 375 miles south of Tripoli. Matsuda praised Libya’s December 2003 decision to abandon the development of WMD programs, calling it a "major contribution to world peace."

They also discussed North Korea’s WMD programs. Qadhafi said that he had spoken to the North Korean leadership, and was trying to persuade them to abandon their WMD programs as well. Qadhafi also said that he would welcome the visit of a Japanese prime minister to Libya, if that could be arranged.

The partnership between Japan and Libya is clearly growing. Not only are they now business partners since the Japanese oil companies’ victory in making bids for Libyan oil rights in October 2005, but they are also now political partners in the Mindanao peace process. It would not be entirely surprising if the next Japanese prime minister or foreign minister were to accept Qadhafi’s invitation to visit.