Gadhafi Reminisces About Pursuit of WMDs, Denies Sponsoring Terror

Sept. 24, 2009 — -- What a difference a day makes.

Just over 24 hours after a marathon rant to the United Nations General Assembly, a much more subdued Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi addressed an audience at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Speaking through an interpreter, Gadhafi recounted his country's pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, denied any state support for terrorism, and expounded on the merits of his personal philosophy.

Dressed in a dark shroud with a gossamer shawl draped over his shoulders, the Libyan leader mumbled and spoke softly, his head often tilted backward and he listened with his mouth slightly agape. He wore a large green Africa-shaped brooch similar to the black one he wore during his speech to the U.N. Wednesday.

Gadhafi frequently was interrupted by shadowy staff members who whispered in his ear before he spoke and passed him notes during questions.

He spoke almost wistfully of his country's pursuit of WMDs, dismissing it as a fancy of youth in the '60s, '70s, and '80s.

"We were young people ... revolutionaries," Gadhafi said. "We were part of the time."

He said his country decided to abandon its pursuit of WMDs after it decided it would be too costly.

Gadhafi denied his country had ever sponsored acts of terrorism in the past.

Years ago, Libya did admit to a role in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland that killed 270 people. The Libyan government eventually agreed to provide monetary compensation to the families of the victims.

Today, Gadhafi said his country had done no such thing, echoing similar comments from his son in a recent op-ed article.

The eccentric leader said his country would not accept a nuclear Iran and denied Libyan arms were flowing into neighboring Chad and Sudan.

Asked later to describe the U.S.-Libyan relationship, a State Department spokesman, P.J. Crowley, said, "Our relationship is a work in progress."