LIBYA: ARMS PROLIFERATION AND ARMED GROUPS. THE LIBYAN CONFLICT REVISED

Abstract

The study critically analyses the effects of the Libyan arms proliferation, with a focus on the Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) in the region. It traces the proliferation of arms occasioned by the Civil War in Libya and establishes an empirical link to some of the regional security challenges to the proliferation. Relevant theoretical perspectives, such as the Security Dilemma and the Security Complex Theory, are adopted to explain the resulting effects of the proliferation such as the increased deadly violence of the rebel forces in the region and the neighboring Middle East region. Innovative arms control has been presented as the opportunity for the region to address the security challenges which are quickly evolving into a proliferation of advanced sophisticated weapons, some of them in the rebel-controlled territories. The study concludes that the regional security challenges partly originate from the Libyan arms proliferation which have also worsened security challenges in different parts of the world. Keywords: Arms proliferation, Security Dilemma, Libya, Regional Security Complex, arms control, Disarmament, Demobilization and Re-integration.