Thaindian News

Copenhagen, Nov 4 (IANS) The chief of NATO Friday dismissed suggestions that the military alliance would intervene to stop the conflict in Syria.

“I understand the question, but Libya and Syria are two very different things,” said NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in response to journalists’ questions over why NATO does not intervene in Syria given its operation in Libya, which ended Monday, reported Xinhua.

“We said ‘yes’ to and undertook responsibility for the operation in Libya because firstly, there was a clear UN mandate to protect the civilian population against attack, secondly because we got active support from countries in the region,” he added.

NATO received a UN mandate to impose a no-fly zone over Libya and protect its civilians as well as the backing from the Arab League, but has not received any such approval in Syria’s case, Rasmussen explained.

“Neither of these conditions exist when it comes to Syria. But having said that, I would like to condemn in the strongest possible terms the Syrian security forces’ behaviour and their attacks on the civil population,” he said.

Syria has witnessed massive anti-government protests across the country since mid-March and a subsequent crackdown by its armed forces.

Rasmussen went on to say that there is “only one way forward in Syria” and that was to respect the population’s wishes on freedom and democracy.

He added that the case of Libya — where erstwhile leader Muammar Gaddafi was toppled by an opposition revolt along with NATO air strikes — sends a “clear signal to the world’s dictators.”

Rasmussen, who previously served as Denmark’s prime minister from 2001-2009, was in Denmark during his tour to meet leaders of NATO member countries.

Here he met Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt for the first time since she was elected to the post in mid-September. The two leaders discussed NATO’s missions in Libya and Afghanistan and the upcoming NATO summit in Chicago in May 2012.

Denmark has actively contributed to NATO missions in recent years, including sending six F-16 fighter jets and personnel to the Libya mission. It continues to contribute to the NATO military action in Afghanistan and to a NATO-led anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden.