On Monday at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi, was elected leader of the African Union, a position he has long sought.

Gadaffi, elected in a closed-door vote at the summit in the Ethiopian capital, vowed to press ahead with plans to create a United States of Africa despite other leaders' reluctance to back his objective.

When Gadhafi was chosen, diplomats from several countries vigorously opposed him, seeking alternatives from Lesotho and Sierra Leone, while some African leaders offered tepid praise for the choice of Gadhaffi.

Despite opposition regarding his appointment, the AU's chairmanship rotates among Africa's regions, and a North African had not been chaired since 2000 when Algeria held the chairmanship.

He attended the session dressed in a gold-embroidered green robe and flanked by seven extravagantly dressed men who said they are the traditional kings of Africa.

In the 46-year-history of the African Union, Libya has never held chairmanship.

Algeria Libya