Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.32728/h2021.06
Muammar Gaddafi’s visit to Yugoslavia on 21-25 June 1977: similarities in views and disagreements in methods
Nikša Minić
orcid.org/0000-0002-2888-3920
Abstract
After the change of government in Libya and establishing Muammar Gaddafi as the head of the country, a period of stronger and more comprehensive political and economic cooperation between Yugoslavia and Libya begins. The closeness of views on many international issues contributed to the strengthening of political cooperation, and the more frequent exchange of economic delegations to the strengthening of economic cooperation. At the time of the Libyan head of stateʼs visit to Yugoslavia, current events in international relations were deteriorating relations in the Middle East and the Horn of Africa, the situation within the Non-Aligned Movement after the 1976 Colombo conference and the CSCE preparatory meeting in Belgrade. The talks showed that the Yugoslav and Libyan positions on resolving the Palestinian question are identical, i.e. that PLO should be supported as the only legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. The Eritrean issue was the main point of the talks on the situation within Africa. The views on resolving this issue were identical in the sense that an agreement should be reached within the federal relationship between Eritrea and Ethiopia. Divisions among non-aligned countries worried the Yugoslav leadership in general and the Yugoslav president in particular, so he had to remind the Libyan guest, whose policies were also part of those divisions, that the most important thing was to maintain the unity of non-aligned countries. The issue of the participation of non-European Mediterranean and nonaligned countries in the Belgrade meeting of the CSCE was of great importance for Yugoslavia and Libya, but the Yugoslav leadership did not look favourably on Libyans conditioning the stance towards Israel and PLO. Finally, although the talks between the Yugoslav and Libyan heads of state showed that there was great closenessin opinions and views on current international events, they also found that Yugoslavia was not ready to support Libyan positions if they posed a threat to certain Yugoslav foreign policy goals.
Keywords
Brijuni islands; Non-Aligned Movement; Libya; Yugoslavia; Tito; Gaddafi; détente; the horn of Africa; CSCE meeting in Belgrade
Hrčak ID:
274274
URI
Publication date:
30.12.2021.
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