New Libya leaders seek to unfreeze funds

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Mahmoud Jibril of the National Transitional Council The head of Libya's rebel cabinet has launched a European diplomatic tour, hoping to project an image of a government-in-waiting and secure the release of billions of dollars in UN-frozen Libyan assets as Muammar Gaddafi's 42-year autocratic regime seems near its end.
In wide-ranging remarks on Wednesday about his country's future, Mahmoud Jibril laid out plans for the post-Gaddafi era, including forming a commission to draft a new constitution that would be subject to a national referendum.
The meetings come as the UN Security Council prepares to vote this week on a resolution that would release $1.5 billion in Libyan assets in US banks that the world body froze as a way to crimp Gaddafi's ability to wage war on his people. That would be a start: Some analysts estimated that as much as $110 billion is sitting frozen in banks worldwide.
The United States and the European Union have called for the quick release of assets to help the opposition National Transitional Council rebuild Libya's economy, restore essential services, reform the police and the army, and pay government salaries.
Jibril kicked off his European trip by meeting with President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, which along with Britain has been the major international power to take a leading role in a six-month air onslaught by NATO in Libya.
September 1 conference
At a joint news conference, Jibril thanked Sarkozy for France's support in "protecting civilians" and appealed for more help "to obtain the unfreezing of Libyan funds so we can transform (our) promises into reality."
Earlier Wednesday in London, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said, "We are engaged at the United Nations and elsewhere to pave the way for the unfreezing of assets, the assets that have been frozen for five months but which ultimately belong to the Libyan people."
As for the NATO-led air campaign, which has provided nearly pivotal support as rebels advanced into Tripoli over the weekend, Sarkozy said it would continue until "Gaddafi and his henchmen no longer represent a threat for the Libyan people."
He implied that the alliance would take its cues from the rebels.
"From the minute our NTC friends tell us ... that Gaddafi's clan is no longer a threat to the Libyan people, at that very minute, coalition military operations will stop," Sarkozy said, adding that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon would also be consulted.
France was the first country to recognise Jibril's government. His trip also was aimed at preparing an international conference on September 1 to discuss how the world community can help Libya move beyond Gaddafi.
Sarkozy said countries such as China, India, Russia and South Africa would be invited to send envoys for the Paris conference next week, attended also by NTC representatives.
Jibril was to travel to Milan on Thursday to meet with Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of Italy, which has served as NATO's base of operations in the campaign and has strong economic, political and historic ties to Libya.
Jibril indicated the rebels still need help, saying the fighting wasn't yet finished.
But he said plans for the future were already taking shape - and his government was talking to the UN about sending up to 200 monitors to help ensure security in Tripoli.
Transition period
As for the transition, Jibril said a commission created with members from around Libya would write a new constitution, which would be put up for a referendum, but he didn't specify a timetable. Once it's adopted, elections for parliament would be held within the next four months - and its president would be Libya's interim leader until a presidential election sometime later.
"The mission of protecting civilians is not over," said Jibril. "The other bigger and fiercer battle has not started yet: it is the rebuilding of Libya."
In the postwar period, a new army would be created, he said, and the National Transitional Council planned "to call on all those took up arms to join either the new army or the new police force that we will constitute in coming days."
The US and its allies have been trying for more than two weeks to get the UN Security Council committee that monitors sanctions against Libya to agree to unfreeze the assets. The decision to lift the sanctions must be unanimous.
Council diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because the discussions have been private, said all 15 nations agreed except South Africa, so the US, Britain and France decided to introduce a resolution instead.
"We expect it to have the necessary support to pass," a US diplomat said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly.
South Africa's UN ambassador was not immediately available to comment.
Sarkozy alluded to South Africa's reticence and said he knows "the story of President (Jacob) Zuma ... to listen to the aspiration of peoples to free themselves from their chains."
"I trust the statesman qualities of Mr Zuma, who sees the situation and sees the hopes of the Libyan people who are demanding the departure of the Gaddafi dictator," he said.
British Prime Minister David Cameron has said Britain hopes to release about $20 billion in frozen Libyan assets, though it wasn't immediately clear if any of that would be covered under the new resolution.