BELGIUM: NATO defence ministers pose for family photo as alliance mulls broad support for Libya campaign

Record ID: 741804

  • Title: BELGIUM: NATO defence ministers pose for family photo as alliance mulls broad support for Libya campaign
  • Date: 9th June 2011
  • Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JUNE 8, 2011) (REUTERS) ENTRANCE TO HEADQUARTERS/ CONVOY ARRIVING CAMERAMAN GERMAN DEFENCE MINISTER THOMAS DE MAIZIERE ARRIVING
  • Embargoed: 24th June 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Belgium, Belgium
  • Country: Belgium
  • Topics: War / Fighting,Defence / Military
  • Reuters ID: LVAGENKXSLX2CVFF47VD7DF55SZ
  • Story Text: NATO sought broader support for the Western bombing campaign in Libya on Wednesday (June 8) with alliance air power stretched by the heaviest strikes on Tripoli so far.
    But as NATO defence ministers met in Brussels to discuss the Libyan campaign, some allies which have refused to take part in the bombing said they would not alter their stance and Sweden, a non-NATO participant, said it would scale down its mission role.
    Of the 28 NATO allies, only eight, led by Britain and France, have been conducting air strikes on the forces of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
    A senior U.S. official warned this week that while there were no risks to the operation as yet, fatigue was beginning to set in among the aircrews already committed.
    All NATO allies agree that Gaddafi, who is battling an almost four-month-old rebellion, must go. But not all view military intervention as the best way to achieve this and some lack the capabilities to contribute to the mission.
    NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he would call on ministers for more burden-sharing and British Defence Minister Liam Fox said he would press allies for greater effort.
    A statement from the NATO allies after the meeting said they were "committed to providing all the necessary means and maximum operational flexibility" to sustain the Libya effort and "welcome additional contributions to our common efforts".
    However, there was no immediate sign allies would be willing to do more with some planning to cut their existing commitments.
    Spanish Defence Minister Carme Chacon said Spain would continue assisting the enforcement of a Libya no-fly zone and arms embargo, but would not undertake strike missions. Norway also said it would scale down its air strike role after its three-month commitmenton June 24.
    Despite saying it would prolong its participation in the military alliance against Gaddafi, Sweden cut the number of fighter jets it has deployed to five from eight and switched its role from patrolling the no-fly zone to reconnaissance sorties.
    While NATO says its bombing campaign has greatly reduced the capacity of Gaddafi's forces, it has yet to land a knock-out blow and analysts say the conflict could drag on for many months -- in the absence of a "lucky strike" on the long-time leader.
    Last week, Rasmussen said he hoped NATO's mission could be completed by the end of September, but many consider that optimistic given the limitations of rebel forces and the fact that NATO has ruled out sending ground forces.
    He said he did not see a major role for NATO after it had fulfilled its U.N.-mandated mission to protect civilians, though NATO could help reform the security sector.
    The international organisation said it stood ready to back post-conflict efforts in Libya "that should be initiated by the United Nations and the Contact Group on Libya," the latter a reference to a consortium of Western and Middle Eastern powers set up in March.
    U.S. Admiral Samuel Locklear, commander of the Joint Operations Command at Naples conducting the Libya campaign, suggested last week a small foreign force may be needed once Gaddafi's regime collapses to help the transition to democracy.
    He said this could come from the United Nations, the European Union, or, for a short time, from NATO. However, NATO officials said that while ministers would discuss the alliance's post-Gaddafi role, there was no plan to deploy ground troops.
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