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NATO vows to stay out of Libyan conflict

Contradicting earlier reports, NATO chief says alliance has no plans to intervene in Libya

NATO's secretary general said Thursday that the military alliance will not intervene in the Libyan conflict and that any outside intervention should have a United Nations mandate.

 

"We have not received any requests in that respect. And anyway, any action should be based on a clear UN mandate," said Anders Fogh Rasmussen, during a visit in Kiev, Ukraine.

 

Fogh Rasmussen said the events in Libya do not threaten any NATO members or allies, but the conflict could spark a mass refugee crisis.

 

The popular uprising in Libya has been violently suppressed, leading some to believe the country could be moving toward civil war.

 

In a column published Tuesday by Cuban state media, Fidel Castro alleged that NATOwas planning to invade Libya.

 

Earlier Thursday, the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi reported that NATO forces may attack troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi if the Libyan air force continues to bomb anti-government protesters, citing a European official claiming the US had threatened to intervene in the violence.

 

The source said NATO and US warplanes stationed in Italy may be ordered to take down Libyan planes, and that electronic warfare against them may already have been implemented.

 

Roee Nahmias contributed to the story

 

 


פרסום ראשון: 02.24.11, 16:45
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