20110610
Reuters
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - In a spartan office on a quiet tree-lined street near the power centres of Brussels sits a man whose role is to promote Libya's opposition movement in Europe.



Christian D. de Fouloy, 69, a French-American lobbyist and businessman, volunteers his time to Libya's Transitional National Council (TNC) in support of its newly appointed ambassador to the European Union, Mohamed Farhat.

A smooth-talking PR man whose perfect English is accented with French, De Fouloy sees his job as developing better communications between Brussels, Benghazi, Washington, Paris and London to ensure the TNC is seen as the appropriate government-in-waiting once Muammar Gaddafi goes or is ousted.

That means ensuring that Farhat meets all his EU counterparts and becomes recognised as the legitimate representative of Libya, even though the former Libyan ambassador to the EU, who defected, still lives in Brussels.

To complicate matters, Farhat, 38, was previously the first secretary in the Brussels embassy and worked for the former ambassador. He was catapulted into the top job this week largely because of his good ties to the TNC leadership.

"He still has a key to the embassy, he still has a diplomatic licence plate on his car, he's never left Brussels," De Fouloy said of Farhat, who has met British, Italian and Maltese diplomats in the past few days and has more appointments lined up.

"We are introducing him around, making house calls, making sure he meets the European Parliament, the French, the Germans, the Spanish, the Russians and Catherine Ashton," he said, referring to the EU's foreign affairs chief.

The goal is to get as many EU member states to recognise the TNC as possible. Spain on Wednesday became the fifth to do so, but that still leaves 22.

It is also about making sure that the TNC message is being delivered consistently in Brussels, Washington, Paris and London, he said, acknowledging that was not always the case.

"In London there isn't really any structure yet," he said. "The only guys that have a structure that I can see right now is Washington. There's an office, there's an ambassador, he has the rank of ambassador, he's in close contact with Clinton.. there's coherence," he said. "Over here there's no coherence."

LONG-TERM OPPORTUNITIES

De Fouloy, whose near-empty office is actually home to his lobbying association and shares space with a company called Bliss Communications, is straightforward about the difficulties of standing up a new ambassador for an opposition government.

Asked who is paying for his work and that of the rebel envoy, he says he works pro bono, while Farhat is "funding himself from his own savings".

"We're actually going to talk about that tomorrow," he said. "Sooner or later some money is going to be earmarked, especially now that they (the TNC) have sold off some oil and there are assets to be unfrozen," he said, referring to Gaddafi money that has been frozen in European accounts.

Asked what was in it for him -- freely volunteering his time and effort for a movement that may, or may not, one day become the recognised authority in Libya -- De Fouloy was clear-cut.

"I feel this is a great opportunity for me in the long run," he said, referring to when Libya is "back on its feet" and a reconstruction phase has begun, when business opportunities might quickly arise in an oil and resource-rich country.

"I know the Arab mentality and they will remember that Christian was loyal to them and it will open opportunities for me business-wise," he said unhesitatingly.

"But the first thing, the first aim, is to get as many countries as possible to recognise the TNC."