Kadafi offers Russia a naval base in Libya

The Russian navy could significantly expand its presence in the Mediterranean after it emerged yesterday that Libya's leader, Moammar Kadafi, has offered Moscow the chance to open a base on its coastline. Kadafi flew into Russia for his first visit since 1985 last night, meeting President Dmitry Medvedev for dinner ahead of talks on more than a billion pounds worth of arms purchases for Libya and cooperation over nuclear energy. Citing a source involved in organizing the visit, the business daily Kommersant said the Libyan leader wanted to offer the Kremlin a naval base in the port of Benghazi in order for Russia to establish a permanent base on the north African coast. "In line with the Libyan leader's plan, Russia's military presence will become a guarantee of non-aggression from the United States which, despite numerous conciliatory gestures, is not in a hurry to embrace Col Kadafi," the paper said. Kremlin officials would not comment on the report but Admiral Ivan Kapitanets, a former deputy navy commander of the Soviet Union and Russia, told Interfax news agency that the plan would "expand the operational potential" of the navy. Russia already has a promise from Syria that it will provide a permanent facility for the Russian navy at Tartus in the eastern Mediterranean. Elsewhere, the Russian navy has fleets in the Black Sea, the Baltic, the Arctic and the Pacific Ocean, but although its ships already patrol the area, the new development would give it a permanent presence in the Mediterranean. Moscow announced plans last year to step up its naval presence in different regions.