Atlantic Council blogs

Juppe praises Clinton diplomacy: “Bravo, Hillary”

By MSN India

From MSN India:  "[I]t was a four-way call with the French foreign minister, the British, the Turk, and Secretary [of State Hillary] Clinton, during which time they hammered out the deal that was later announced," said the [senior administration] official.

Coalition command compromise: small war council, plus broader assembly

By Ian Traynor and Nicholas Watt, the Guardian

From Ian Traynor and Nicholas Watt, the Guardian:  The US, Britain, France and Turkey agreed to put the three-pronged offensive – a no-fly zone, an arms embargo, and air strikes – under a Nato command umbrella

Libyan crisis exposes gaps in Europe’s military capabilities

By Philip Stevens, the Financial Times

From Philip Stevens, the Financial Times:  Above all, however, the Libyan venture has betrayed the paucity of Europe’s military capability.

Allies flying more air patrol missions over Libya than US

By Philip Ewing, Morning Defense

From Philip Ewing, Morning Defense:  “We flew a total of 130 coalition sorties, 49 of which were strike-related, meaning they were designed to hit a designated target. Of those total sorties, roughly half were flown by pilots from partner nations,” he [Adm. Gortney] said. “In fact, nearly all, some 75 percent of the combat air patrol […]

Unify NATO’s Libya Operation

By Damon Wilson

Fighting effectively requires fighting coherently under a unified chain of command.  In Libya, this means NATO exercising effective command and control of the coalition operations.  The Alliance now has command of two of three pillars of the military operation: enforcing the arms embargo with a naval blockade and (as of a few hours ago) enforcing […]

US-Russia Relations: Reset—Fahgettaboudit; Get a New Hard Drive

By David Smith

American Vice President Joseph Biden whisked through Moscow and Chisinau last week, promoting the Obama Administration’s “reset” of US-Russian relations. Ushering Russia into the World Trade Organization, the VP said, is an American priority. He ticked through the accomplishments attributed to reset, leveled some unvarnished criticisms at his Russian hosts and exited through Moldova, an itinerary that […]

Kabul Spring: The End of the Beginning of NATO Operations in Afghanistan

By Derek Reveron

Spring officially began this week and the nice weather ushered in a new year (1390) in Afghanistan. If the blooming fruit trees and budding roses are indicative, the spring looks promising. To be sure, NATO and Afghan forces anticipate the challenges of a new fighting season. But NATO and Afghan military and police have also […]

Day 7 Partial NATO Breakthrough: “There will still be a coalition operation and a NATO operation”

By Slobodan Lekic, the AP

From Slobodan Lekic, the AP:  NATO agreed late Thursday to take over part of the military operations against Libya – enforcement of the no-fly zone – after days of hard bargaining among its members.

Diplomats mourn “death” of EU defence policy over Libya

By the DPA

Libya: The View from Germany

By Natascha Braumann

Almost a week after Germany’s abstention in the UN Security Council, the domestic political debate is as heated as ever. Lothar Rühl, writing in Wednesday’s Frankfurter Allgemeiner Zeitung, summarizes the confusion and disharmony among NATO allies over the establishment and enforcement of a no-fly zone over Libya. And, almost as an afterthought, he claims that […]