A World without a Landlord

The last thing the U.S. administration wanted was an additional front in the land of Islam. For that reason, it has been convenient for Washington to leave the main role in the Libyan campaign to Paris and London. It was also important to have Arab countries join the war against Gadhafi.

Against Libya, the U.S. has put together a coalition war. The crusade to protect the Libyan people from Gadhafi is more reminiscent of the 1991 Gulf War, and less of the one in 2003. Gadhafi, being in control of 80 percent of his country’s territory, will try to recreate Saddam’s (temporary) achievement. Is it possible? Everything is possible in a world without a landlord.

Washington Is a Party to Hypocrisy

The last weeks have not added honor to Obama’s legacy. The Arab “Spring of Nations” has led to a series of conflicting and confused messages from Washington. At the moment, for example, Obama has actually opted to tour Brazil. No wonder the world is nervous. The Obama administration wanted a war against Gadhafi, but only a rhetorical one.

Reality forced it to change its policy. But both Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have emphasized the necessity of the coalition. Clinton even found time in Paris to list for journalists the countries partnering with the U.S. in the venture. America has delivered a message: It is not alone, it is not leading, and even its participation is only for its “unique capabilities.”

In 1991, America led an international coalition. In 2011, it is being dragged into an international coalition. Vive la petite difference.

It is impossible not to reflect on how much the world is hypocritical and how deep Washington is “in” this: In Paris, the United Arab Emirates promised that its state-of-the-art aircraft would take part in Libyan skies. The world applauded. At the same time, the UAE dispatched troops to Bahrain in order to protect the Bahraini royal family from the demands of its people for democratization. And the world, again, clapped its hands.

The international community is very lucky that Gadhafi is the target. There is a consensus of hostility toward him. But there are really no surgical wars — and at the moment when civilians are killed by weapons of the “coalition,” public opinion, mostly that of the Arab world, will change. Until then, the world will seek to get rid of Gadhafi, and at the same time find for itself an alternative leader.