Oliver Wright: Time is running out for the Colonel – and the British PM
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference."The thing you have to remember," said the diplomat, "is that every day this goes on, things don't get any better for Gaddafi. He has less money, less weaponry and less support. Ultimately we have time on our side". But, despite a good week for Nato and the rebels, time is increasingly becoming a problem for David Cameron as well.
The Prime Minister badly needs a decisive breakthrough in the conflict before three key events coming up in the next six weeks. The first is the UN General Assembly meeting in New York starting on 13 September, which Mr Cameron is due to address later in the month. Ideally, he would like to declare a version of "mission accomplished". The last thing he needs is a continued stalemate as a backdrop to his speech.
In June, Russia and China signed a joint declaration saying that nations must "not allow the wilful interpretation and expanded application" of UN resolutions. If Gaddafi is not gone by late September they may decide to repeat that call.
The second and related date is expiry of the current Nato mandate for action in Libya, which occurs at the end of September. While there is no question of Nato withdrawing support from the current Libyan mission, it will nonetheless be uncomfortable for the British if there is still no sign of an imminent end. That would bring into sharp focus international concerns about Nato's effectiveness and there could be divisions on the UN Security Council about how long to extend the mandate.
The third date is, domestically at least, the most important. At the start of October Mr Cameron will travel to Manchester for the Conservatives' annual party conference. Again, he will want to declare that British involvement in Libya has been successful. If he cannot, there will be whisperings about the advisability of his taking such a leading role in an intractable conflict.
Yesterday, Mr Cameron met the new Libyan chargé d'affaires, Mahmud Nacua, and spoke to Abdul Jalil, chairman of the Transitional National Council. He said: "I think this is a moment not to be complacent, but optimistic that we are getting closer to the future that many of us talked of. It has taken time, but I think we are heading in the right direction."
It is not the first time in the last six months he expressed similar sentiments. He will be sincerely hoping it will be close to the last.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments