Issued by: Office of the President
STATEMENT ON RELATIONS WITH LIBYA
The South African government has noted with contempt the article in London's Sunday Telegraph that South Africa intends to supply the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya with weapons and military spare-parts.
What is utterly disgusting about this article is that it is a pure fabrication invented by the newspaper and its unnamed sources. Besides the other untruths contained in the article, the references to chemical and biological weapons defy the imagination.
The South African government would have expected of a newspaper that claims a measure of integrity to have at least tried to verify its information with representatives of our government.
We are therefore compelled to conclude that those who elected to peddle these untruths are either part of a massive disinformation campaign against our new democracy, or they have allowed themselves to be used in such a campaign.
South Africa abides by decisions of the United Nations on the issue of Libya. At the same time, we are part of the resolutions of the Organisation of African Unity on how this matter should be resolved. We are working closely with other OAU members and interested parties to seek an amicable solution to this problem.
Our National Arms Control Committee, made up of Cabinet Ministers, is responsible for the regulation and control of all exports of conventional arms from South Africa; and it ensures that arms transfers are regulated and controlled in a consistent, responsible and accountable manner. This includes South Africa's obligations arising from decisions of the UN Security Council.
The government wishes to put on record that neither President Nelson Mandela nor the South African Government and its agencies have entered into any discussions - let alone concluded any deals - with Libya on arms for oil transactions.
If at all such a decision is ever taken, the South African government will publicly declare its intentions and fully state its reasons for doing so.
22 June 1998
For further information, contact: Parks Mankahlana (President's Office) 082-553-4569, or Marco Boni (Department of Foreign Affairs) 083-443-7740