Obama's coalition is starting to crumble.

[ekrem]

At the back and front of Sarkozy's mind is his campaign to win re-election as president of France next year. He is currently behind Marine Le Pen, the daughter of the founder of the far-right National Front party (FN), who is enjoying high ratings after taking over from her father.

Marine Le Pen did well in the first round of voting of local elections in France over the weekend to score 15% of the vote. Angelique Chrisafis, our Paris correspondent, wrote on Monday night that around 400 candidates from the FN will go through to the second-round vote on 27 March. Until now the party has had no councillors.

Sarkozy the showman has been caught out by Marine Le Pen.

Is Nicolas Sarkozy's re-election campaign setting pace of Libyan action? | Politics | guardian.co.uk

 

[ekrem]

The Nato operations are to be steered from Nato's joint force command in Naples, while the nerve centre for the no-fly-zone air sorties will be a combat air operations centre in Izmir, Turkey.

Nato to decide within days whether to take control of Libya military action | World news | The Guardian


PM Erdogan: France has been booted out
Erdoan: Paris devre d kald - Hrriyet Gndem
Crazy frog.

 

[ekrem]

Frankly, no one gives a shit what Turkey says....

Yes.

 

[ekrem]

Turkish base to be center of NATO operations in Libya

“Paris has begun to be excluded, which is a positive development,” Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Friday in Istanbul

Turkish base to be center of NATO operations in Libya - Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review

 

[yota5]

Obama's leadership on the international scene leaves the USA open to a contemptuous toleration at best. Newt Gingrich, has coined a phrase that sums Obama's, leadership style the best; "Spectator in Chief." Like his liberal predecessor, Slick Willie Clinton, he is an embarrassment to the USA. More American lives will be lost to his incompetence. Just like he did in Congress, he is still voting present.

"WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama said he was setting clear and unmistakable terms for the U.S. role in Libya: It would be limited, lasting days, not weeks, and its purpose was to protect Libyan citizens.

But that's not the way it's turned out. Less than a week later, the mission has been clouded by confusion and questions about who's in charge and who's doing what — all while the killing of civilians is going on.

Read more: Analysis: Libya mission is clouded by confusion - FoxNews.com

 

[ekrem]

STRATFOR says, that USA has supported Turkey in struggle between France-Turkey in the Libyan issue, which ended with French leader making a step back.

Turkey is doing more than just trying to undermine France’s leading role in the Libyan operation. Ankara’s broader strategy is to demonstrate its own capability and willingness to shape geopolitical events in a changing region in which it has vested economic and political interests. Turkey seems to be enjoying U.S. support in this strategy, with Libya emerging as the first area of coordination between the two countries since unrest began in North Africa and the Middle East.
(...)
Cooperation between Turkey and the United States is unlikely to be limited to Libya. As North African and Middle Eastern countries deal with domestic unrest, the United States needs Turkey — an emerging power in the region — to help contain the instability that could result from government transitions in these countries. Turkey’s clout in Libya remains to be seen, but its involvement there will serve as a test of its ability to influence events in the region.

Turkey’s role is likely to be more influential in the Persian Gulf, where Ankara is becoming more involved in the struggle between Iran and Saudi Arabia over Bahrain. On March 14, Saudi forces intervened in Bahrain as part of the Gulf Cooperation Council Peninsula Shield Force. Since then, Iran and Saudi Arabia have been trying to assess each other’s capabilities and intentions, with the Saudis demanding the removal of Iranian assets from Bahrain before it withdraws its troops. Turkey, which has tried to prove that it can communicate with Iran, is attempting to facilitate dialogue between the Arabs and the Persians. This effort intensified during recent visits by Saudi and Bahraini foreign ministers to Turkey, which were followed by a March 21 phone conversation between Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and his Iranian counterpart, Ali Akbar Salehi.
(...)
Turkey and the United States will have more opportunities to cooperate in the region, particularly in Iraq on the eve of the American withdrawal. Turkey has both the ability to talk with the Iranians and the ability to balance Tehran’s influence in Iraq. And with political dynamics in flux throughout the Middle East and North Africa, the interests of Ankara and of Washington will be converging again.

Free Article for Non-Members | STRATFOR

France tried to step in in the vacuum the USA is leaving behind.
France is using Libya to show herself again in the Greater Middle East area, it smells opportunist 'morning air' with the USA withdrawing.
But, it had to climbdown on its ambitions.

"France and Turkey, at loggerheads over whether authority for the campaign should be vested in Nato, agreed on Friday that the alliance should take control in what was a climbdown by Paris."

Nato to decide within days whether to take control of Libya military action | World news | The Guardian

 

[ekrem]

If today were elections in Germany, this guy (Frank-Walther Steinmeier) would be Chancellor according to polls. Merkel has lost majority in polls for about 1 year.

He says:
"In my political life I have never seen a decision to launch a military operation by the
international community which reflects so much on national interests by a State.
France, who had close relations with Libya and Gaddafi, has the need
to cover up it's own actions within Libya with the military operation".

Militäreinsatz in Libyen: Unionspolitiker kritisieren Enthaltung Deutschlands - Arabische Welt - Politik - FAZ.NET

Merkel's position is not different.
Les miserables.

 

[ekrem]

Benghazi Airport and Harbour will be taken over and run by Turkey to faciliate delivering Humanitarian Aid to the people there

The Guardian

 

[ekrem]

Meanwhile, Italy has shifted to Germany's and Turkey's position.
The 3 countries will present an immediate ceasefire on Tuesday's conference about Libya which will be in London.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/27/libya-italy-idUSLDE72Q02R20110327
Italy Seeks Libya Plan With Germany, Minister Tells Repubblica - Bloomberg
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/03/28/3175087.htm?section=justin

Those who try to isolate Germany, will see getting isolated themselves. Money is my honey in EU's fiscal crisis.

 

[The T]

Obama doesn't realize that IF Mo-Mo succeeds? There will be HELL to pay...Mo-Mo doesn't forget, and will dispatch terrorists to do his bidding.

 

[ekrem]

Ope calls for ceasefire and suspension of use of arms in Libya

Pope calls for suspension of use of arms in Libya

 

[ekrem]

NATO’s command-and-control center for its Libyan no-fly zone mission will be at a NATO base in Izmir, Turkey, a NATO spokesman said (...)
The spokesman added that it will take dozens, not hundreds, of warplanes and at least three Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) surveillance aircraft to enforce the no-fly zone.

Free Article for Non-Members | STRATFOR