The United Nations tonight approved a Libyan request to accredit envoys of the country's interim government as Tripoli's sole representatives at the world body, effectively recognising the National Transitional Council.
The 193-nation general assembly approved the request with 114 votes in favour, 17 against and 15 abstentions. UN officials have said that Libyan UN ambassador Abdurrahman Shalgham is expected to retain the post as Tripoli's top diplomat at the United Nations.
The defection of Mr Shalgham's deputy, Ibrahim Dabbashi, to the rebels in February inspired dozens of Libyan diplomats worldwide to denounce Libyan leader Muammar Gadafy's crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators.
Mr Shalgham, a former foreign minister who was considered to be close to Col Gadafy, eventually followed Mr Dabbashi's lead and joined the rebel cause, denouncing the Libyan leader in an impassioned speech in which he compared Libya's long-time leader to Hitler and Pol Pot.
Highlighting how things have changed since the 1980s, when President Ronald Reagan dubbed Col Gadafy the "mad dog of the Middle East," US ambassador Susan Rice congratulated Libya and vowed that Tripoli would have "a friend and partner in the United States."
"The Libyan people still have much more work to do, but they also have the full knowledge that the international community, including the United States, stands ready to help their transition towards democracy, prosperity, and the rule of law," she said in a statement.
Several Latin American countries, however, sharply criticised the decision to recognize delegates of the transitional Libyan government.
Venezuela's UN ambassador Jorge Valero said his country rejected the "illegitimate transitory authority imposed by foreign intervention" and any attempt to transform Libya into a "protectorate" of Nato or the security council.
Mr Valero also blamed Nato and the security council for failing to push for a ceasefire rather than a victory of the rebels over Col Gadafy, some of whose forces continue to oppose the fighters of the new government in isolated areas around the oil-producing Opec member.
Delegates from Cuba, Bolivia and Nicaragua echoed Mr Valero's remarks.
Angola, speaking on behalf of southern African countries, called for a delay of the vote to accredit Libya, but that motion was heavily defeated.
Reuters