Western Europe

UN authorizes military action in Libya

By Maria Golovnina and Patrick Worsnip, Reuters

From Maria Golovnina and Patrick Worsnip, Reuters:  The United Nations authorized military strikes to curb Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, hours after he threatened to storm the rebel bastion of Benghazi overnight, showing "no mercy, no pity.

NATO nations to increase sharing of imagery and intelligence assets

By NATO

From NATO:  In the spirit of “smart defence”, nine Nations have launched at the end of February a five-year project that will significantly boost the Alliance’s ability to tackle new challenges such as piracy by rapidly sharing imagery and other information from intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets.

European governments “completely puzzled” about U.S. position on Libya

By Josh Rogin, the Cable

From Josh Rogin, the Cable:  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s meetings in Paris with the G8 foreign ministers on Monday left her European interlocutors with more questions than answers about the Obama administration’s stance on intervention in Libya.

Specter of Rebel Rout Helps Shift U.S. Policy on Libya

By Mark Landler and Dan Bilefsky, the New York Times

From Mark Landler and Dan Bilefsky, the New York Times:  The prospect of a deadly siege of the rebel stronghold in Benghazi, Libya, has produced a striking shift in tone from the Obama administration

Libya a reminder that Europe matters

By Clayton M. McCleskey, the Dallas Morning News

From Clayton M. McCleskey, the Dallas Morning News:   [T]he on-going crisis in Libya and the unrest across the region are reminders that the U.S. cannot solve every problem on its own.

Would a Kosovo-level intervention succeed in Libya?

By Max Boot, the Wall Street Journal

French FM: Arab nations willing to join military operation in Libya

By AFP

From AFP:  Several Arab nations are prepared to take part in a military operation in Libya to stop the advance of leader Moamer Kadhafi’s forces, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe wrote on his blog on Wednesday. "Only the threat of force can stop Kadhafi. It is by bombarding, with the few dozen planes and helicopters […]

New Commander for NATO’s Allied Rapid Reaction Corps

By Allied Command Operations

From Allied Command Operations:  Lieutenant General James Bucknall has assumed command of NATO’s Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) from Lieutenant General Sir Richard Shirreff who is assuming the appointment of Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe.

NATO forces seize rockets from Iran in Afghanistan

By Kimberly Dozier, the AP

From Kimberly Dozier, the AP:  NATO forces in Afghanistan have seized 48 Iranian-made rockets intended to aid the Taliban’s spring battle campaign, the most powerful illicit weapons ever intercepted en route from the neighboring state, officials said Wednesday.