Colin Powell: Lifting Sanctions After Control of Libya's Nuclear Program - 2004-01-06

Colin Powell: Lifting Sanctions After Control of Libya's Nuclear Program - 2004-01-06. The U.S. Secretary of State says Washington will not consider lifting trade and economic sanctions against Libya until its chemical and nuclear weapons programs are under control. Colin Powell stated on Tuesday in an interview with reporters in Washington that the Bush administration wants to gain a clear understanding of the weapons that Libya possesses, and then will cooperate with Tripoli to ensure the destruction of these weapons. Only after these weapons have been dismantled in a verifiable manner will the issue of lifting the eighteen-year sanctions against Libya be considered. Colin Powell expressed this view one day after President Bush renewed the eighteen-year economic sanctions against Libya, stating that Libya must take decisive steps towards disarmament. The U.S. Secretary of State also mentioned that Pervez Musharraf, the President of Pakistan, informed him that he is reviewing reports suggesting that Islamabad provided technology for the design of centrifuge facilities to enhance Libya's nuclear programs.