Documents Show China & Gadhafi Regime Discussed Arms Deal in July

Updated at 4 p.m. edt.

An embarrassed Beijing government claims it had no idea Chinese arms dealers met with members of the Gadhafi regime in July, but insists no weapons were sent to Libya.

"We have clarified with the relevant agencies that in July the Gadhafi government sent personnel to China without the knowledge of the Chinese government and they engaged in contact with a handful of people from the companies concerned," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said a press conference in Beijing.

"The Chinese companies did not sign arms-trade contacts, nor did they export military items to Libya," she said. "I believe that the agencies in charge of the arms trade will certainly treat this seriously."

end update
---[

Moammar Gadhafi left an ugly paper trail that confirms some startling geopolitical realities. 

The latest screaming headline from the Gadhafi regime's secret files: "China offered Gadhafi huge stockpiles of arms: Libyan memos."

The Globe and Mail of Toronto reported that Chinese arms manufacturers were in discussions in late July to sell around $200-million worth of weapons and ammunition to Gadhafi.

The arms deal would have been in violation of United Nations sanctions.

The Canadian newspaper published some of the actual documents regarding China written in Arabic (with English explainer notes added).

There seems to be no limit to the juicy bits of information rolling out the Gadhafi regime's expansive records as human rights groups, rebel leaders, journalists and others rifle through the captured documents.

The first of the blockbuster disclosures from the Gadhafi files late last week revealed that the regime quickly developed relationships with the U.S. and British intelligence agencies after Gadhafi halted his weapons of mass destruction programs and invited inspectors into his country in 2004.

Gadhafi very much viewed Al Qaeda and Islamist militants as his enemy as well, but not lost on the Libyan dictator was the American-led Iraq invasion and toppling of secular oil-state dictator Saddam Hussein. The Iraqi despot had no connection to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks or many of the other charges the Bush administration leveled.

But, if it could happen to Saddam, Gadhafi knew it could happen to him too. Rather than take the chance, Gadhafi played ball with the the Central Intelligence Agency and MI6 through his intelligence chief Musa Kusa, the documents showed.

The man kept extensive records, incuding the creepy find of the week: Gadhafi's clip book filled with photos of former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice.

Ick.

So Gadhafi really believed he could prevail over the rebels, because he certainly had enough time the last sixth months to get rid of some of the more embarrassing and perhaps even incriminating evidence.

Despite all the oil money, the ornate tastes and the fully stocked underground bunker, what Moammar Gadhafi really needed was a paper shredder.

Frenzied Diplomacy as NATO Repeatedly Bombs Gadhafi

Updated at 11:45 p.m. edt

Frustrated rebel forces in Misurata claim they are ready to march west ultimately toward Tripoli, but NATO has told them not to advance in fear of unnecessary civilian casualties or friendly fire casualties at the hands of NATO aircraft.

"We should move, we want to move. But Nato told us we must stay here," Salem Shneshah, a rebel Black Brigade medic, told The Guardian of London.

"The red line, we cannot cross," Khalid Alogab, a section commander in the Libyan rebel Black Brigade, told the newspaper. "If we get the order from Nato we can go. We can capture Tarhuga (a town to the east) in two hours."

But rebel army spokesman Commander Ibrahim Betalmal urged patience, expecting the alliance aircraft to soften up resistance from diminishing forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi.

"We have been given instructions to stay on the border," Betalmal said. "No doubt NATO will help a great deal in clearing the way forward for us."

end update
---[

A Russian envoy is meeting with the Libyan rebels in Benghazi, while a top official in Moammar Gadhafi's cabinet is in Beijing making a plea for Chinese officials not to abandon the shrinking government in Tripoli for the rebels like Moscow is doing.

The diplomatic offensive comes on a day when NATO warplanes launched the largest set of daylight strikes to date in the air campaign, including some low-flying attacks that seemed to taunt the increasingly weakened Gadhafi loyalists.

"So what you’re seeing across the country is a inexorable trend of the regime forces being pushed back, being incapacitated. You’re seeing defections, oftentimes of some very high-profile members of the Qaddafi government, as well as the military," President Obama said at a joint news conference with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

"And I think it is just a matter of time before Qaddafi goes," Obama added.

Some of the NATO bombs hit around Gadhafi's compound, but the defiant dictator still vowed to hang on to power.

"We will not surrender, we welcome death. Martyrdom is a million times better," Gadhafi said in a phone call to state-run television in between attacks. The sound of jets appeared to be heard in the background during the call.

But in a sign of just how isolated Gadhafi has become, Libyan Foreign Minister Abdul-Ati al-Obeidi traveled to China just days after China opened diplomatic relations with the rebel Transitional National Council, the Chinese news agency confirmed. Chinese representatives have now twice met with high-ranking rebel political leaders.

Russia has already flipped on Gadhafi, acknowledging that his days are numbered and he has few powerful friends, if any, to turn to in the world.

To drive home the point, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's envoy to Africa, Mikhail Margelov, met in Benghazi with TNC Chairman Mustafa Abdel Jalil, the Russian news agency confirmed.

Chinese Ambassador Meets with Libyan Rebel Leader

There is more bad news for Moammar Gadhafi on the diplomatic front.

A week after Russia flipped on the Libyan dictator and embraced the Libyan rebels, China's ambassador to Qatar, Zhang Zhiliang, met in Doha with Mustafa Abdel Jalil, the leader of the rebels Transitional National Council.

"Chinese ambassador to Qatar Zhang Zhiliang has recently met with Chairman of the Libya's National Transitional Council Jalil and the two sides exchanged views on the Libyan situation," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.

"China's position on the Libyan situation is clear, that is, we expect the Libyan crisis can be solved through political means and believe that Libya's future should be decided by its own people," Hong said.

So who does that leave in the Gadhafi camp? The African Union? Syria? Iran? The Klingons?