Britain has agreed tohold a Security Council vote early next week on lifting UNsanctions on Libya, to give France more time to win a betterdeal from Tripoli for the victims of the 1989 bombing of aFrench airliner, a British diplomat said today.
"We have agreed a short extension with the French untilearly next week," the British diplomat told reporters, speakingon condition of anonymity.
At France's request, the council had asked Britain andFrance to try to reach agreement - and then report back to it- on a reasonable delay for a vote to end the sanctions andthus close the book on the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.
Britain had been pressing for a quick vote on ending thesanctions, imposed after the Pan Am jumbo jet was blown up overLockerbie, Scotland, now that Libya has agreed to pay up to $10million to each of the families of the 270 people killed.
A letter Libya sent to the Security Council last Friday,accepting responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing and agreeingto pay an expected $2.7 billion in compensation to the victims'families, capped 15 years of three-way negotiations with Libyaon the Lockerbie atrocity.
But Paris, which has veto power in the Security Council,had then vowed to block the resolution while it pursued talksaimed at a better deal for the families of the 170 peoplekilled in the bombing of a UTA jet over the West African stateof Niger.