World leaders on Tuesday refused all forms of military intervention in Libya, abandoning Col Muammar Gaddafi’s fleeing opposition to its fate.
France and Britain failed to persuade other world powers meeting in Paris to impose a no-fly zone over the country, where pro-Gaddafi forces claimed to have taken the last major town before the rebel capital, Benghazi.
The no-fly proposal was absent from the G8 foreign ministers’ closing statement in Paris, following resistance from Russia, Germany and the US. China, a United Nations security council veto-holder, is also opposed.
Shame. Between them, France and England could do the job, but the last time they tried that, in the Suex Crisis, the UN and the good ol’ USA forced them to back down, leaving another North African thug in power.
Good. Maybe this means the West has finally learned its lesson.