U.S. NAVY PLANES TO BEGIN OPERATIONS NORTH OF LIBYA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00552R000505250003-3
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 2, 2010
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: January 24, 1986
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Approved For Release 2010/09/02 : CIA-RDP90-00552R000505250003-3
A_. WASHINGTON POST
24 January 1986
U.S. Navy Planes to Begin
Operations North of Libya
By Bob Woodward
and George C. Wilson
Washington Post Staff Writers
The Reagan administration yes-
terday ordered two aircraft carrier
battle groups in the Mediterranean
to begin flight operations north of
Libya, Defense Department officials
said.
The warplane operations, sched-
uled to begin from the carriers USS
Saratoga and USS Coral Sea last
night, were described by one ad-
ministration official yesterday as
"part of the war of nerves" between
the Reagan administration and the
Libyan leader, Col. Muammar Qad-
dafi. The Navy planes will be within
range of Libyan radar as they fly
training exercises but are under
orders not to cross into Libyan air-
space, the official said.
The carrier operations are the
latest in a series of maneuvers by
the administration in an attempt to
show resolve against Qaddafi, who
has been repeatedly accused of sup-
porting international terrorism.
Earlier this month, Reagan an-
nounced further economic sanctions
against Libya.
At the same time in White,
House meetings Jan. 6 and 7 Rea-
an also or ere tat more money
and manpower-Ea evote to the
development of a CIA covert oper-
ation against a a i and that an
envoy be sent tom-t fortur ifler
discussions about coordinating pos-
sib a military options, sources said.
Although there have been discus-
sions within the administration re-
cently about ambitious anti-Libyan
military options, the sources said
that at this point joint action by the
United States and its Middle East
allies would be undertaken only if
Qaddafi attacks a neighboring na-
tion or is found to be responsible for
terrorist actions similar to the Dec.
27 attacks on the Rome and Vienna
airports.
Some administration officials
want to encourage Egypt to be
more aggressive in confronting Lib-
ya, the sources said. These officials
believe Egypt has been too reluc-
tant to request U.S. assistance in
any potential anti-Qaddafi moves,
said the sources, who spoke on con-
dition that they not be identified.
Anti-Qaddafi feeling runs high in
the Egyptian Defense Ministry,
where the special envoy was ex-
pected to hold his discussions. But
A U.S. official
called the oper-
ations "part of the
war of nerves."
other officials in Cairo are reluctant
to demonstrate any military alliance
with the United States against an-
other Arab nation because of the
potential political repercussions in
Egypt, the sources added.
A Pentagon team began initial
military planning discussions in
Egypt late last summer because of
administration concerns about pos-
sible military and terrorist moves
by Qaddafi in the region. The plan-
ning began following the hijacking
of Trans World Airlines Flight 847
in June in which one American was
killed and 39 others held hostage
for 17 days.
Sources said that under a plan
approved t e res- ent st year
the CIA is working hand to develop
a uepnnt for undermining a -
dafi, but has been hampered by the
absence of a large, well-organized
and committe rou o 0 osition
forces either inside or outside the
country.
One source spoke of the need for
some "Qaddafi contras," a reference
to the large, U.S.-backed rebel
group trying to overthrow the San-
dinista regime in Nicaragua. 'thin
administration intelligence circles
there is growing skepticism that the
CIA's anti- a a i pan will wor
because of the absence of opposi-
tion forces, due in part to a afi's
rut ess campaign to kill opponents
anywhere in the world. 'T erfi h
been one estimate it will tak
up to a year to get any CIA oper-
ation off, the groun .
At the same time, the CIA wants
to identify and cultivate potential
successors to a a i who are pro-
Western. This problem is worsened
by the strong anti-American sen-
timents prevailing throughout much
of Libyan society, according to in-
telligence estimates.
"There are people in Libya, es-
pecially in the military, who don't
like Qaddafi," one source said, "but
most hate the United States."
Although Qaddafi claims the en-
tire Gulf of Sidra and its airspace as
Libyan territory, the United States
recognizes territorial waters ex-
tending only 12 miles from the Lib-
yan coast. Initially, U.S. planes are
expected to begin flying north of
the gulf but eventually work their
way south within a week, the official
indicated. The warships are author-
ized to sail in the Gulf of Sidra to
reassert U.S. rights in the region.
The first indication of the exer-
cises came yesterday when the
Pentagon confirmed that the Navy
had issued a "Notice of Intent to
Conduct Flight Operations" through
the International Civil Aeronautical
Organization.
That document, which is not clas-
sified, says carrier flight operations
will be conducted for a week within
the Tripoli Flight Information Re-
gion, a sector of airspace extending
scores of miles from Libya. The
notice said all operations would be
conducted in international airspace
with aircraft operating either under
visual flight rules "or within radar
surveillance and radio communica-
tions of a surface or airborne radar
facility."
According to one report, the last
time Navy jets conducted opera-
tions within the Tripoli flight region
was on Jan. 27 and 28, 1985. Qad-
dafi claimed at the time that the
United States was planning to in-
vade his country and cited a similar
Notice of Intent.
V
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White House officials denied re-
ports that the current exercise was
intended to provoke Qaddafi. In the
past month, following the European
airport attacks and accusations of
Libyan complicity, activity in the
Mediterranean has become more
intense as Libyan forces were put
on alert, the Soviet Union increased
its surveillance of the U.S. Sixth
Fleet and the United States in-
creased its presence to more than
two dozen Navy ships.
Two Libyan Mig 25 fighters flew
next to a Navy EA6B electronic
jamming plane outside the Gulf of
Sidra last week but took no action.
The incident was played down as
routine by Defense Secretary Cas-
par W. Weinberger.
On Aug. 19, 1981, Navy fighters
shot down two Libyan fighters
above the Gulf of Sidra after the
Libyans allegedly fired first.
Staff researcher Barbara Feinman
contributed to this report
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