International records / Foreign Relations of the United States

188. Paper Prepared in the Department of State

ance of Libyan Oil The relative strategic importance of Libyan oil has declined since 1969, when it filled over a quarter of West Europe’s oil imports. Production restrictions in Libya, coupled with rapidly growing production in the Persian Gulf and Nigeria, have since reduced the crucially important role which Libyan oil plays. Nevertheless, a number of European countries remain heavily dependent on Libyan oil—for Germany they represent 25 percent, for Italy 22 percent, the UK 13 percent, and France 11 percent of total 1972 imports—while OECD Europe in general remained 14 percent reliant on L…