The Financial Times: "Face down Gaddafi"

The leading article in the Financial Times (www.ft.com):

FACE DOWN GADDAFI
Published: March 13 2011 20:59 |

As Muammer Gaddafi’s regime gains the upper hand in its struggle against the uprising in Libya, pressure is mounting in the US and in other western countries for governments to intervene with force.

Time is short and they need to act soon—lawfully and in concert.

Nato governments will discuss options this week. But the international community is still divided. The European Union has failed to back British and French plans for a UN resolution threatening a no-fly zone. China and Russia are also unwilling. The Arab League, on the other hand, has just backed the idea – an “important step”, as the White House rightly called it.

Without stronger support from allies, the US is reluctant to choose military intervention. Its reluctance is understandable. It is still fighting two wars in Islamic countries – efforts not widely applauded in the rest of the world, or at home for that matter, however odious the defeated regimes.

A no-fly zone, moreover, is not to be undertaken lightly. The problem is not logistical – Barack Obama’s military chiefs, including Robert Gates, defence secretary, are oppressed by existing demands on US forces and are exaggerating the difficulty. The problem is what happens if Col Gaddafi redoubles his brutality and keeps winning. A no-fly zone obliges governments to understand that, should it fail, they will have to take the next step, or else withdraw in disgrace.

Despite the risks, a UN-sanctioned no-fly zone should be imposed: the overriding consideration must be to protect Libyans from Col Gaddafi’s ongoing brutality. In executing this policy, the US should be more forceful in asking other countries to come together and act. However, it should not be asked to shoulder more than its fair share of the political burden, and no more than necessary of the military burden.

In both regards, Europe should play at least an equal part. On a narrow calculation of interests, after all, it has more at stake. Acting in concert, and now with the support of the Arab League, the US and the EU would make Russian and Chinese resistance to intervention harder to sustain.

It is late in the day, but a UN-sanctioned no-fly zone would restrain Col Gaddafi’s regime and might yet tip the balance in favour of the rebels. It needs to happen without further delay. Meanwhile, discussion of military action must not distract governments from bringing new and more forceful non-military sanctions to bear as well.