France to release Gaddafi's 1.5 bln euro assets to rebels

France will release 1.5 billion euros of Libya's assets in French banks and give them to the rebels, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said on Thursday. An international conference, dubbed the "friends of Libya," is taking place on Thursday in Paris. Over 60 foreign delegations are participating in the talks. Among them are the Contact Group on Libya member states that comprises participants in the NATO-led military operation and representatives of the United Nations, the Arab League and the African Union, as well as China, Russia, India and Brazil that have expressed concerns over the operation. "There are tens of billions of euros in frozen assets. The Americans have unblocked theirs and the British, French and Germans are doing the same," Juppe told RTL radio station prior to the Paris talks. Paris is planning to unblock 5 billion euros for the Transitional Council out of Libya's French-based 7.6 billion euros, frozen under a UN Security Council resolution. According to French authorities, Gaddafi's government reportedly has total of 50 billion euros in assets all over the world. Earlier on Thursday, Russia, along with other 45 countries, recognized the Libyan National Transitional Council as the only legitimate power in the country.