LONDON, 29 December 2003 — A group that stands to benefit enormously from Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi’s dramatic announcement is British business.

Unlike in Iraq, British business is way ahead in the lucrative contracts stake in Libya, thanks to a quiet, unassuming, patient diplomacy by the British government, which has started to bear spectacular political fruits and promises equally rewarding economic benefits. A few weeks prior to Qaddafi’s announcement, a British trade delegation organized by the Middle East Association (MEA) in London, was concluding a highly successful trip to Libya.

“The general feeling was that the timing of the visit was good and that the market is ripe for development. Libya is a pleasant country to visit and the people are so friendly and welcoming that you can overlook the occasional frustrations. As a large relatively undeveloped market, it has a lot of potential. The drive to encourage the private sector seems to be for real, although there is still confusion over some of the rules and regulations which haven’t yet been clarified,” stresses Peter Willington of the MEA.

American business can only look on with envy as President George W. Bush continues to drag his feet over lifting sanctions against Libya primarily to satisfy the neo-conservatives who seem to dominate key areas of his administration. Though Qaddafi’s announcement was cautiously welcomed by the White House, the imminent lifting of US sanctions remains a non-starter, despite the intense lobbying of US firms, especially the oil and allied industries.

Even the Russians are in on the act as competition for Libyan business hots up. Russia has just appointed a new trade representative, Toufik Melikov, to Libya. Moscow is keen to rehabilitate its trade relations with Tripoli to the old Soviet Union levels, when it supplied arms, heavy machinery, civilian aircraft and other technologies to Libya. Moscow is also keen to resolve the sensitive issue of Libyan debt to the old Soviet Union, which runs into billions of dollars.

British business in fact is gearing for a bumper year in the Middle East in 2004. Qaddafi’s announcement has opened up a Pandora’s box of new relationships not only with Libya, but with others in the region.