VZCZCXRO4561
PP RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV
DE RUEHTRO #0688/01 2471853
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 031853Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3845
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES
RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS PRIORITY 0760
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 0705
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS PRIORITY 0607
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 1210
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI 4359

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TRIPOLI 000688 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL IT LY
SUBJECT: QADHAFI, BERLUSCONI SIGN HISTORIC AGREEMENT 
 
TRIPOLI 00000688  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) The Italian Ambassador in Tripoli briefed local heads 
of mission on a "historic treaty of friendship and cooperation" 
(or "colonial compensation agreement", as the Libyan government 
has characterized it) signed on August 30 in Benghazi by Libyan 
leader Muammar al-Qadhafi and Italian prime minister Silvio 
Berlusconi.  The signing ceremony took place on the front 
terrace of the former residence of the Italian colonial military 
governor of Libya, and was witnessed by several hundred 
descendants of Libyans who had been exiled by the Italians 
during that period, as well as by the son of famed Libyan 
resistance fighter Omar al-Mukhtar.  In remarks at the event 
that were widely publicized in Libya, Berlusconi expressed 
regret for the pain that Italy's colonization had caused to 
Libyans. 
 
 
¶2. (SBU) According to the ambassador, the treaty is intended to 
"turn a new page" in Italian-Libyan relations, which have been 
plagued by difficulties due to Italy's colonial history in 
Libya.  He said his government had insisted that Qadhafi, rather 
the the prime minister, sign the document to underscore its 
historic nature and to help ensure that it would be respected by 
Libya.  It contains 23 articles covering a wide variety of 
topics                                   including trade and 
investment, illegal immigration, scholarships, the return of 
stolen antiquities, the re-naming of a Libyan holiday, and, most 
prominently, an Italian commitment to fund USD 5 billion of 
infrastructure projects in Libya. 
 
 
¶3. (SBU) Highlights of the treaty, which the ambassador said 
must be ratified by the Italian parliament, are: 
 
-- Infrastructure investment:  Italy will provide USD 5 billion 
in funding for infrastructure projects in Libya over a 20-year 
period (i.e., USD 250 million/year).  Libya will propose 
projects; a joint Libyan-Italian committee will decide which 
will be funded; and Italian companies will implement them. 
 
 
-- "Special initiatives":  Italy will build 200 housing units 
for descendants of Libyans who were deported to Italy during the 
Italian occupation; provide hospitalization in Italy to victims 
of land mines (according to the local United Nations head 
representative, there are approx. 2 million land mines in Libya 
dating from the Italian colonial era, WWII, and Libya's 
conflicts with Egypt and Chad); provide a number of scholarships 
for Libyans to study in Italy; and return antiquities that had 
been taken from Libya to Italy (the "Venus of Cyrene," a 
Roman-era statue that had been removed from Libya in 1916, was 
unveiled at the signing ceremony). 
 
 
-- Non-discrimination:  Libya will revoke a regulation requiring 
Italian companies investing in Libya to double-register with the 
Ministry of Economy and the Prime Minister's office.  This 
regulation had added a discriminatory, political layer of 
regulatory approval for Italian investments, the ambassador 
said. 
 
 
-- Illegal migration:  The treaty calls for implementation of 
earlier bilateral agreements aimed at stemming the flow of 
illegal migration from Libya to Italy.  The ambassador noted 
that the number of such migrants, who are mainly sub-Saharan 
Africans, had sharply risen, from 8,000 last year to 18,000 this 
year. 
 
 
-- Border control:  In response to a longstanding Libyan request 
to the European Union to fund a border control surveillance 
system for its southern land border, Italy in this treaty agreed 
to fund up to 50 percent of the cost of such a system, provided 
that Italian firms are awarded a corresponding percentage of the 
project. 
 
 
-- Visas:  Italians who were expelled from Libya in 1970 
(shortly after Qadhafi came to power) will be allowed to return 
to Libya to visit.  They originally numbered over 20,000 and had 
been barred from returning to Libya. 
 
 
-- Fishing:  Libya agreed to negotiate an MOU with Italy over 
fishing rights in disputed waters. 
 
-- Human rights:  The agreement includes a provision on respect 
 
TRIPOLI 00000688  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
for human rights. 
 
-- Dialogue:  The two sides agreed to meet yearly at the prime 
minister and foreign minister levels. 
 
-- New holiday:  Libya agreed to cancel the annual October 7 
"Italian Evacuation Day", marking the expulsion of Italians from 
Italy, and replace it with a "Libyan-Italian Friendship Day," to 
be celebrated annually on August 30, the date of the signing of 
the treaty. 
 
 
¶4. (SBU) Comment:  The GOL was eager to conclude the historic 
treaty with Italy this year as part of its recent, accelerated 
opening to Europe that began with the resolution in 2007 of its 
dispute with the EU over the jailed Bulgarian nurses.  The GOL 
views the signing of a claims settlement agreement with the 
United States on August 14 and the Secretary's upcoming visit as 
similarly major milestones in its re-engagement with the West. 
STEVENS