CAIRO, Aug. 23 (Xinhuanet) -- The son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said on Monday that Libya will resume diplomatic ties at ambassadorial level with the United States soon.

    Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, who heads the Gaddafi International Association for Charitable Organizations, told reporters in Tripoli that the United States and Libya will open their embassies in each other's capital within days.

    He also said that the United States is expected to remove Libya from its list of state sponsors of terrorism by the end of this year.

    The younger Gaddafi, who currently gives art exhibitions in some European and Middle East countries, said he hoped to visit the United States and exhibit his art work there in the near future.

    Relations between the United States and Libya have improved dramatically after Tripoli accepted responsibility for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am passenger plane over Lockerbie, Scotland, and agreed in December 2003 to give up the quest for weapons of mass destruction

    The United States opened a liaison office in Tripoli in June, marking the resumption of direct diplomatic relations between the two countries after a 24-year suspension. Enditem