United Kingdom

Future RAF missions under threat if Libyan intervention continues

By Thomas Harding, the Telegraph

From Thomas Harding, the Telegraph:  Air Chief Marshal Sir Simon Bryant has told MPs that intense air operations in Afghanistan and the Middle East are placing a “huge” demand on equipment and personnel. In a briefing paper delivered to senior politicians and obtained by The Daily Telegraph, the RAF’s second in command said morale among […]

Comparing Norms for National Conduct in Cyberspace

By Jason Healey

Over the past few years, many states, intergovernmental organizations, and think tanks have offered proposals for new norms and principles to govern activity in cyberspace. We’re nearing a bifurcation between east and west. There is significant overlap between the proposals of the United States and United Kingdom and significant agreement between them and those of the […]

Gates’s parting shot exposes Europe’s military failings

By Charlemagne, the Economist

From Charlemagne, the Economist:  Three months into the war in Libya, and confident talk of Muammar Qaddafi’s forces being broken by NATO’s bombs is being accompanied by worries that the alliance itself is feeling the strain of a prolonged campaign. The British naval chief says that, if the war drags on beyond the autumn, he […]

US funds hunt for Libyan missiles

By Stephen Braun, the AP

From Stephen Braun, the AP:  The U.S. is paying two European mine-clearing groups nearly $1 million to hunt and dispose of loose anti-aircraft missiles that could make their way from Libyan battlefields to terror groups. The hiring of weapons demolition experts hardly dampens concerns about anti-aircraft missiles still in the hands of the Gadhafi regime’s […]

Libya Campaign Shows Need to Re-Think the Transatlantic Link

By Camille Grand, the European Institute

From Camille Grand, the European Institute:  NATO itself has looked shallow as a military alliance. The shift from Odyssey Dawn to the NATO led Unified Protector has not increased the commitment of the allies’ forces.

NATO’s Libya Op may soon loose its only aircraft carrier

By David Brunnstrom, Reuters

From David Brunnstrom, Reuters:  Worse looms over the horizon, with France indicating it will need in the autumn to withdraw the Libyan mission’s only aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, on virtually continuous operations since last year — with no replacement in the offing.

NATO allies bicker over lack of firepower in Libya

By James Blitz and Ana Fifield, the Financial Times

From James Blitz and Ana Fifield, the Financial Times:  Military experts say one way of gauging the lack of firepower in the Libya operation is to compare it to Nato’s 1999 air war over Kosovo.

NATO Secretary General and British Prime Minister discuss Libya and Afghanistan

By NATO

Britain needs to reverse its defense cuts

By Con Coughlin, the Telegraph

From Con Coughlin, the Telegraph:  With every day that passes, the wanton destruction visited upon our Armed Forces by the Government’s inept handling of last year’s Strategic Defence and Security Review becomes more evident.