Lessons from Libya: How Not to Intervene

[Vattel]

BOTTOM LINES

• The Conventional Wisdom Is Wrong. Libya's 2011 uprising was never peaceful, but instead was armed and violent from the start. Muammar al-Qaddafi did not target civilians or resort to indiscriminate force. Although inspired by humanitarian impulse, NATO's intervention did not aim mainly to protect civilians, but rather to overthrow Qaddafi's regime, even at the expense of increasing the harm to Libyans.

• The Intervention Backfired. NATO's action magnified the conflict's duration about sixfold and its death toll at least sevenfold, while also exacerbating human rights abuses, humanitarian suffering, Islamic radicalism, and weapons proliferation in Libya and its neighbors. If Libya was a "model intervention," then it was a model of failure.

• Three Lessons. First, beware rebel propaganda that seeks intervention by falsely crying genocide. Second, avoid intervening on humanitarian grounds in ways that reward rebels and thus endanger civilians, unless the state is already targeting noncombatants. Third, resist the tendency of humanitarian intervention to morph into regime change, which amplifies the risk to civilians.

read more: http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/publication/23387/lessons_from_libya.html

[Cheese Sandwich]

1. This is a huge foreign policy question for our times

What is smart power anyway?

It was a centerpiece of Hillary Clinton's claim to foreign policy experience.

This is great info. Thanks.

[Vattel]

2. I find it jaw-dropping that describes our illegal and disastrous war effort as smart power.

She is shameless.

[Cheese Sandwich]

3. This was a great content OP

The board is moving very fast lately and some quality stuff falls through the cracks.

You're right of course it's totally shameless.

I'm not able to figure out if it's good intentions with horrible judgement, or bad intentions with great judgement, when we're talking about things regime change policy in places like Libya and Syria. I'm stuck.

[Vattel]

4. The OP is very carefully thought out. When true experts write on a topic, you get better stuff.

[Arazi]

6. It's not good or bad intentions. It's just bu$ine$$

HRC is a hawk for many reasons not least of which is that it's good for bu$ine$$

[nationalize the fed]

5. k&r

Truth cuts like a knife

First, beware rebel propaganda that seeks intervention by falsely crying genocide.

Second, beware government propaganda that does the same



Reminders of Kosovo- John Pilger

13 December 2004

Kosovo - the site of a genocide that never was - is now a violent "free market" in drugs and prostitution. What does this tell us about the likely outcome of the Iraq war?
http://johnpilger.com/articles/reminders-of-kosovo

When the US started bombing Belgrade, the people of the town stood on their bridges to try to protect them. The US Media mocked them. That's the legacy of the Clinton/Kissinger New World Order.

Milosovec is dead but Camp Bondsteel* Lives!

*"The Gitmo of the Balkans"