REAGAN: 'WE HAVE EVIDENCE' OF LIBYAN PLOT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00561R000100050009-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 27, 2012
• Sequence Number: 9
• Publication Date: December 8, 1981
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100050009-7
Ti? 3 At PEAREly
O. PAGL
By Lee Lescaze . and George Lardner Jr.
-Vjjhington PfttStaff Wttter7
President Reagan, rebutting Lib-
yan leader Col. iluammar Qaddafi,
;aid yesterday that--thg United
States has evidence that--Libya has
sent assassins to murder senior U.S.
official.
"We have the evidence; and he
knows it," Reagan told-reporters who
as ed him about Qaddafi's denial of
and plot to kill U.S. leaders and his,
demand that Reagan- produce evi
derce to support ,.several charges
that hit teams have been dispatched
to the United States on Qaddafi'..
orders.
Reagan did not make public any
such avidence, but he, convened a
National Security Council meeting
at which economic options to-
co, inter Libya were discussed amid
indications that the United States is
close to taking action. 1 .2,
When Reagan' was asked during
his brief meeting with reporters
whether the United States can stand
by idly, he replied: "Maybe you've
just 'caught me before we've 6d'
a
chance to counsel on this." -
Except for his * remark that Qad,
daft, who called Reagan "silly" ' and
"ignorant" for believing the assay i-
nation squad reports and "a liar" for
spreading therm, knows- Wsshingtonri
has the evidence, Reagan jccularlyl
turned aside other questions 'during-'a brief meeting with reporters in the
White House press room_
Asked about Qaddafi:'I harsh
words about him, Reagan replied: "1;1
wouldn't believe a word he says if hi
were you."
Reagan, around whom. security
has been increased, was asked if he' l
feels adequately protected and joked
about the press room "Yes," he said,.
"if I didn't think I -was adequately;
protected, I wouldn't come into thisI
THE WASHINGTON POST
8 December 1981
While the administration has nut
backed up its claims publicly with
evidence, reports have been leaked
to news organizations that a defector
walked into a U.S. diplomatic ;nisi!
lion in Western Europe within the'."
last month and brought with him
detailed descriptions of the 10 men,
most of them Libyans, who report-
edly make up the hit teams. The
defector reportedly was also aware of
their instructions and some details of
their training.
One well-placed source said re-
,ports about what the Libyans are
planning have included "lots of spec-
ulation" and amount to what might
best be described as "a plausible sce-
nario"based on "a limited amount of
knowledge."
With that understood, this source
said, authorities are trying to guard
against tactics such as those used in
the September ambush attack.,near
:,,Heidelberg against the commander
of U.S. Army forces in Europe.
In that incident, which was linked
to West German terrorists, two rock-
et-propelled grenades and a volley of
bullets were fired, severely damaging
the rear of Gen. Frederick J. Kroe-
sen's armor-plated car. Kroesen was
not seriously injured.
Members of the Senate Intelli-
gence Committee, ne y an un-
naz Centrai Intelfigence Agency
official yesterday, suppo ea-
.gan's actions.,
Sen. Henry M. Jackson (D-Wash.),
said: "The statements made by the
administration are correct. It's a se-
rious problem." He dodged questions
about whether any members of Con.
gress reportedly are Libyan to gets.
Jackson also said administration of-
ficials had been justified in going
public about the threats.
The president is scheduled to
chair a second National Security
Council meeting today. Having the
r.,..,.. ^ r _ 1 president nreside over the NSC on
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28 :
The .problem confronting Reagan
is that economic options are not
guaranteed to work and for the most
part require cooperation by other
nations.
One option is a boycott of Libyan
oil, but oil company executives say
other customers would buy that oil
unless the United States can win
agreement from Britain, France,
Italy and Japan to join a boycott.
Chances of such international agree-
ment are slight, administration
sources said.
Only British cooperation would be
necessary to close the oil fields tern
porarily by depriving Libya of tech-
nicians vital to operation of the
fields. The technicians are American
and British, and their companies
could be ordered to withdraw them
from Libya.
In the short term, the Libyans
would be hurt. Eventually, 'they
probably would have to turn to the
Soviet Union for technicians, giving
Moscow greater influence and con-
trol over Libya and its oil. -
U.S. oil companies had not been
told of any government decision yes-
terday, and industry officials said
they had not been given fresh guid-
ance. Last summer, the State De-
partment advised U.S. citizens to
leave Libya,.but the government has
yet to make any concerted.effort to
stop operations of the six U.S. oil
companies doing business in Libya.
. "We're trying to take our signals
from the U.S. government," one oil
industry source said. "But so far
we're being told not to push any
panic buttons."
About 1,500 U.S. citizens, mostly
oil workers and their dependents,
remain in Libya.. ? .. -
CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100050009-7