NATO’s Libyan Lessons
NATO’s intervention in Libya one year ago helped to avert a humanitarian catastrophe and reversed the roles of its member states, with Europe taking the lead and prodding the US to cooperate. But the mission's success may have obscured the persistent weaknesses in Europe’s military capabilities.
https://prosyn.org/huTvyg1
WASHINGTON, DC – NATO’s intervention in Libya one year ago helped to avert a humanitarian catastrophe and created the conditions for Libya’s citizens to end Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi’s dictatorship. The military operation highlighted important improvements in European leadership since the Bosnian debacle in the 1990’s, but the conditions underlying the Libya mission’s success cannot be counted upon to exist again in the future. Indeed, NATO’s accomplishment in Libya risks obscuring persistent weaknesses in Europe’s military capabilities.