EU sanctions have been confirmed against five Libyan investment and banking bodies and a key member of the regime.
The measures freeze the European assets of the Central Bank of Libya and Colonel Gaddafi’s sovereign wealth fund, the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA).
Also subject to sanctions are the Libya Africa Investment body, the Libyan Foreign Bank and the Libyan Housing and Infrastructure Board.
The LIA holds around $70 billion (£43.6 billion) and has stakes in a range of European companies, including publishing group Pearson, Italy’s Unicredit bank, industrial group Finmeccanica and Canadian oil exploration group Verenex, as well as Juventus football club.
The EU has already banned the supply of arms, ammunition and any equipment that could be used for “internal repression” and slapped visa bans and frozen the assets of 26 members of Colonel Gaddafi’s regime. It today adds Mustafa Zarti, an Austrian citizen who is vice-chief executive of the LIA, to the list. He is also head of oil company Tamoil, board member of the National Oil Corporation, and head and vice-chairman of First Energy Bank in Bahrain.
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The emergency talks on Libya will end today with a call for Colonel Gaddafi to step down immediately.
Nato defence ministers yesterday agreed to send more ships towards Libya’s coast. But they delayed any decision on imposing a no-fly zone, saying a clear UN approval for military action was needed first.
“There is no rush to move forward without the UN,’’ said Baroness Ashton of Upholland, the EU’s foreign policy chief, who met Nato ministers after chairing the meeting of EU foreign ministers.
On military as well as on political options towards Libya and the Arab world at large, Europe needed to move in concert with the region, notably the Arab League which meets in Cairo this weekend, she said.
“We have to work closely with the region in our approach,’’ said Baroness Ashton, who will be flying to Cairo on Sunday to debrief Amr Moussa, the Arab League leader.
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“The Arab world has to lead.’’