Rift over command of Libya campaign

Rift over command of Libya campaign

French attempts to sidestep Nato at the outset of military operations against Libya have divided the international coalition enforcing a no-fly zone over the country, western diplomats said. The French moves, which western diplomats said included launching the first attack on Libya without fully informing its allies, angered US and UK officials and are hampering efforts to transfer command of the operation to Nato, officials said. Relations grew so tense on Monday that French and German ambassadors to Nato walked out of a meeting of the North Atlantic Council, the alliance’s decision-making body, after Anders Fogh Rasmussen, secretary-general, criticised Paris for impeding Nato involvement and Germany for not actively participating. http://link.ft.com/r/G8OTZZ/PRYZB4/PRJPK7/C50MY5/263ELG/CM/h?a1=2011&a2=3&a3=21