Posted on 03/11/2011 2:36:24 PM PST by Tailgunner Joe
France broke ranks with its European partners yesterday (10 March) by becoming the first country to recognise Libya's opposition and by deciding to "explore the possibility" of carrying out targeted bombings in the civil war-torn country. EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton finds herself pushed onto the sidelines as EU leaders flock to Brussels for a crisis summit.
France wants to explore the possibility of targeted bombing in Libya as an alternative to imposing a no-fly zone, French officials said on Thursday.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy raised the idea during talks with members of his UMP political party, three party sources said.
"Extremely limited but targeted strikes in specific cases and not necessarily on airbases are being explored," a member of Sarkozy's party, who attended a lunch with him at the Elysée Palace, told Reuters.
Sarkozy will present concrete plans for a response to the crisis at a European Union summit on Friday in Brussels and, according to the source, the possibility of air strikes was among the options being worked on.
In Brussels, where EU foreign ministers met yesterday to prepare for today's summit, countries were reluctant to accept the French initiative to recognise the Libyan opposition. The move was opposed "by 26 against one," one source told EurActiv.
Libyan opposition figures: Turncoat torturers?
Foreign ministers were taken by surprised by France's move to recognise the rebel-led National Council, with Paris announcing it would send "an ambassador" to rebel capital Benghazi.
The French diplomatic move was celebrated by a group of protesting Libyans outside the EU Council building in Brussels and was reportedly welcomed in Benghazi.
But it also irritated several EU countries. "That [the] leadership are legitimate people to talk to, of course, but we recognise states rather than groups within states," UK Foreign Secretary William Hague told the press in Brussels.
"We cannot unilaterally rush into recognising groups," said a spokesman for Catherine Ashton, the EU's foreign affairs chief, a position backed by Britain, Germany, Italy and others.
Italian Foregn Minister Franco Frattini insisted that any such move should be decided unanimously and that the most important thing was for Europe to speak with one voice on the matter.
"Italy wants a European decision that everyone shares unanimously because that's how we act credibly," Frattini said.
A high-ranking diplomat who asked not to be named warned that prominent turncoat figures from the Gaddafi regime had grabbed leadership positions in the Interim National Council, something he said was "disturbing".
EU sources told EurActiv that some of the people in the Interim National Council were among those responsible for the caricature trials of Bulgarian nurses, who spent eight years in a Bengazi jail before being freed in July 2007 at the intervention of French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
France proposes 'targeted air strikes'
Ashton and her team had stood strongly against the idea of giving official recognition to the Interim National Council.
But the recognition of the anti-Gaddafi rebels appears a relatively minor issue when compared to Sarkozy's announcement that France will propose the launch of air strikes on Gaddafi's command headquarters to EU leaders at today's summit.
An EU source said the foreign ministers had not discussed military options, as the issue was reserved for heads of state and government meeting today.
Officials from Ashton's European External Action Service insisted that military action against Libya should not be taken without a clear United Nations Security Council mandate and the support of the Arab countries.
"We do not want to appear as crusaders," a high-ranking diplomat told EurActiv.
The draft summit conclusions, obtained by EurActiv, read that Gaddafi must relinquish power "immediately" and contain no language on measures against the regime other than freezing of assets.
But those could be upgraded, on the basis of a joint letter by Sarkozy and UK Prime Minister David Cameron, which states that the Interim National Council is a "viable" political interlocutor, and also speaks of the possibility for a no-fly zone or "other options" to prevent Libya from carrying out air raids.
According to the EU Treaties, the bloc's Common Foreign and Security Policy is an area of "shared competence" between member countries and the Union. In an effort to ensure greater coordination and consistency in EU foreign policy, the Treaty of Lisbon created Catherine Ashton's post.
Ashton is in charge of implementing the agreed common positions of the EU. It appears, however, that there is no obstacle preventing one member country from breaking free from positions that have already been agreed, as illustrated by France in the Libya case.
Meanwhile, the situation in Libya has deteriorated, with the military momentum turning against the rebels (see 'Background').
Positions Meeting in Brussels on Thursday (10 March), NATO defence ministers discussed imposing a no-fly zone over Libya to stop pro-Gaddafi forces from using air power against the outgunned rebels.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said this could happen only with a demonstrable need, a clear legal basis and firm regional support, not all of which now apply. This would require evidence of war crimes against civilians.
"We strongly urge the government of Libya to stop violence and allow a peaceful transition to democracy," he said, quoted by Reuters.
The United States, scarred by costly and controversial wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, appeared to be backing away from military action in another Muslim country.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said international consensus was needed for the next steps on Libya.
"Absent international authorisation, the United States acting alone would be stepping into a situation whose consequences are unforeseeable," Clinton said.
She also expressed doubt about proposals to set up a no-fly zone over Libya, saying previous such zones set up over Iraq and Serbia had had little effect.
The White House on Thursday said the United States was in touch with the Libyan National Council but was still reviewing the goals of the rebel body fighting to end the reign of Muammar Gaddafi, Reuters reported.
Asked if the United States would also recognise the Council, White House spokesman Jay Carney said the United States had reached out to Libyan opposition groups, including the Council, but was still trying to figure out what they stood for.
"We are still engaged in the process of assessing those groups, the Council and other individuals, to find out what their vision is, who they represent, what their ideas are and where they would take Libya in a post-Gaddafi future. But we are very engaged in that process," he said.
But Gulf Arab ministers meeting in Riyadh called on the Arab League to take measures to stop the bloodshed, including the imposition of a no-fly zone to protect civilians.
The UN Security Council is deadlocked over whether to vote on a no-fly zone over Libya and anxiously waiting to see the results of key European Union, Arab League and African Union meetings to decide future action, diplomats quoted by AFP said on Thursday.
France and Britain have drawn up a resolution on a no-fly zone which has not been officially sent to other members. China and Russia oppose moves for the council to approve even tentative military action. Germany and other countries have called for a tightening of existing sanctions.
The European Parliament adopted yesterday a resolution calling on the EU to "establish relations" with the anti-Gaddafi rebels.
The resolution, by all political groups, also calls on EU member states to "stand ready" for a UN-mandated no-fly zone over Libya, to prevent the Gaddafi regime from targeting the population, and to help repatriate or resettle migrants fleeing the growing violence there.
"EU governments need to stand ready for a decision in the UN Security Council on further measures, including the possibility of a no-fly zone," in compliance with a UN mandate and coordination with the Arab League and the African Union, stressed MEPs in a widely-backed resolution (584/18/18). During the debate, only the GUE/NGL group was against this idea.
To support Libyan rebels and lend them more international credibility, MEPs also called on EU High Representative Catherine Ashton to "establish relations" with the rebels' representatives in the Interim Transitional National Council and "to start the process to make them official". The European Parliament condemned "in the strongest terms the blatant and systematic violations of human rights in Libya" by Muammar Gaddafi's regime and called upon to step down immediately.
"The European Parliament seconds the United Nations in their unanimous message to the Libyan dictator: step down, stop the bloodshed, face justice," said Portuguese MEP Ana Gomes (Socialists & Democrats), the Parliament's rapporteur on Libya.
Ben a while since France got in a bees hive.
If the British and the French want to intervene in Libya, they can go right ahead.
But the US should STAY OUT.
The Europeans colonized Libya, trade with Libya, and buy Libya’s oil.
Their soldiers can die for their economic interests.
There is no American interest in this conflict. Libya isn’t worth one dead American.
Bombing the devil we know, to help the devils (?) we don’t know.
The the USA will have to come in and try to salvage some semblance of order
Then the French and Germans and Russians will get all the contracts to rebuild Libya's oil industry, sell them some swell new radars and military stuff, and buy their oil and they'll all hate the USA for trying to be zionist neocolonialists or something
C’est la Vie
Methinks they are trying to secure a vast oil supply well into the future. But the revolutionaries have to win.
"Absent international authorisation, the United States acting alone would be stepping into a situation whose consequences are unforeseeable," Clinton said.
By far the most serious foreign affairs issue facing the United States is the invasion of millions of illegal "immigrants" from a neighboring country.
Although Hillary is an arrogant CFR leftist operative, there is a logic to human affairs, and on this, at this time, she is correct. Libya can massacre its own, with the understanding that the human values of any parties in the conflict are not conclusively ours (the USA).
Again, this is a diversion from the most serious foreign affairs issue facing the United States, the internal political denial of an illegal, devastating invasion of the United States by a recalcitrant, disrespectful crowd of invaders and the political forces who send them.
Does any one here enter another nation without authorization?
Johnny Suntrade
Their last North African venture did not end well. But speaking cynically, there’s nothing like a nice little manageable war to reverse a politician’s poll slide and M. Sarkozy has a rough looking reelection to consider.
“If the British and the French want to intervene in Libya, they can go right ahead.
But the US should STAY OUT.”
Agreed. F**k Libya. We need to stay the HELL OUT.
We should/could have taken out that POS bastard goat humper camel sodomizing Khadaffy Duck decades ago. But we didn’t.
Turkey has warned Western powers to stay out of the Libyan conflict.
Russia has indicated that it opposed any UN mandate. Where does all that gas heating Europe come from or through? Things could get interesting for Europe.
Hey frenchy,
Good luck with that
Perhaps had he directed the police to beat he’ll out of those burning cars, his polling numbers would be better.
while everybody hems and haws gadaffy duck will slaughter the rebels at his will. we do not need to go there. they will take are of their own business. right or wrong.
France broke ranks with its European partners yesterday (10 March) by becoming the first country to recognise Libya's opposition and by deciding to "explore the possibility" of carrying out targeted bombings in the civil war-torn country. EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton finds herself pushed onto the sidelines as EU leaders flock to Brussels for a crisis summit.The French have peacekeepers in Lebanon who aren't keeping the peace, are basically letting the Hizzies do whatever they want. Until they are removed and brought home to France, they are potential hostages. So of course France is talking tough.
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