NATO Rift on Libya: Italy Cuts Back Role

Italian PM Condemns Libya War

Much of the rhetoric in favor of the Libyan War heard in the House of Representatives today centered around claims that supporting the war was vital for “solidarity” with NATO, and the fact that it is a NATO-led war has regularly entered into the debate. Yet NATO is not only divided on the war, but that division is growing. And becoming more public.

That was the news today out of a press conference today, when Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi openly condemned the war, and the Italian government also announced that they are scaling back their invovlement, and removing their aircraft carrier from the conflict.

The moves come just weeks after Italian officials made public their discontent with the conflict as currently being fought and called for a humanitarian ceasefire, a call which was angrily condemned by French officials as a “sign of weakness.

The alliance has been split over the war from the start, with a number of member nations never starting involvement in the first place. With Italy being used as a staging area, their decreased involvement could seriously raise the costs of NATO’s involvement.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.