Ban Ki Moon being protested at in Sri Lanka
The UN is renowned as ineffectual genocide watchers and resolution passers. The French commonly known as surrender monkeys. Both however, have substantial strength of arms and are now using them in Africa. This is obviously not a good thing, but for the times it may be a lesser bad. The UN has authorized military action to protect civilians in Libya and participated in the same in Cote de Ivoire. France is sending fighter jets to the former and their troops have secured the airport in the latter. It’s a new turn of affairs.
I think both interventions are right. Some pundits like Andrew Sullivan seemed to have learned the wrong lessons from Iraq, that all military interventions not in self-interest are bad. There are cases where thousands of people are about to be slaughtered Zenga Zenga where intervention is called for. There are cases where a tyrant is cornered and force can force him out. The lesson should not be no action but right action.
That said, both interventions could go pear-shaped quite fast. But at the time, they seem like decent decisions. Another reassuring trend is that events which took months or years in the past are now compressed into weeks or months. Perhaps this is a function of attention. Or maybe it’s Twitter.
What about Sudan? North Korea?
…not forgetting Sri Lanka!
Dunce you dog! we missed you!
obviously the UN isn’t Ironman.
In Sudan they’ve actually had a vote to amicably split the country
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12379431
North Korea is fucked and no one but China has leverage there
Sri Lanka what? Sri Lanka didn’t need an intervention, unless it was to disarm the LTTE
We need to disarm the Rajapaksas’…indi…got anything to say about http://www.thesundayleader.lk/2011/04/03/their-colombo-plan/
Whose gonna pay for all this, me? :)
If Libya did not have oil would poeple matter? and Côte d’Ivoire, do not forget French love chocolates. UN aagh just forget it
oops, people
Who needs a go ahead from the UN eh? take Iraq and Libya for example. At least Bush went ahead with the support of the congress (diplomacy first they said, then if that fails lets go to war!), in the case of Libya Obama didn’t even get approval from congress (that makes him a bigger asshole IMO). So the status quo is thus, the US doesn’t even need to “consult” with its “people” (representatives) to have “troops” (CIA whatever) on the ground within the borders of a sovereign state. The UN? hah I’ve been to my fare share of model UNs while at school and the real UN is only marginally more efficient (health is an area where they have been hugely successful, I’ll concede that much)
As for the French – we all knew Sarkozy was wonky from the start, hes just demonstrating it for our benefit just like W. Bush did with Iraq, same league IMO (ideologically similar too mind you- both of them are conservatives etc etc). Intervention can be good thing (read Kofi Annans thesis on intervention) but these folks need to get their priorities sorted out. Fuck up middle eastern/north African states even more OR commit themselves to end the systematic torture, rape and murder in places like Sudan. Now thats a cause worth fighting for, who gives a shit about Libya? let them sort that shit out.
This situ is a bit like the situation we had after the first gulf war when Bush Sr. told the Iraqis to “rise up” against Saddam. American support was minimal and Saddam crushed the “rebellion” quite easily. In a spectacularly similar fashion (no thanks to the half assery of NATO and the UN) Qaddafi seems to be crushing his opposition with brutal efficiency (watch the CNN report on the capabilities of the “rebels” – they had fired an RPG on to THEIR side by mistake!! EASY!). Ok so if you are going to help the “rebels” just go all the way! get troops on the ground and go ahead with Iraq 2.0, just don’t half ass it.
these guys no very well that Libya is untameable. They don’t want to risk another iraq type situation.
The general opinion is that without ground troop its going to be a stalemate at best. The present UN mandate does not allow ground troops. Looks like China, Russia and the BRIC countries have allowed the West and the US to be dragged into a war that cannot be won under the present mandate. When ground troop mandate is requested I expect China and Russia to veto.
More here specially an assessment of the rebel capabilities by George Friedman founder of SRATFOR.
Has Mahinda backed a winning horse by supporting Gaddafi
Indi, regards the comment above intervention in Sri Lanka. Basically on your premise, the Indian air drop to the LTTE 1n 1987 was fine. Hey, they were rebels with a cause and were about to be annihilated by the Govt forces.
What stalemate? they’ve lost another city, this time thanks in part to NATO.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/04/07/libya.war/index.html?hpt=T1
This revolution is pretty much done. Without charismatic leadership and any real military discipline these people never had the chance to win. I hope countries like China & India will put enough pressure on gaddafi to prevent the whole sale slaughter that might ensue after the fall of Benghazi