NATO: 'We're Doing a Great Job'

The AP reports:

A NATO general sharply rejected French criticism Tuesday of the operation in Libya, saying the North Atlantic military alliance is performing well and protecting civilians effectively.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe had said NATO should be doing more to take out strongman Moammar Gadhafi's heavy weaponry that is targeting civilians in Libya.

Juppe said NATO's actions were "not enough" and insisted the alliance should be firing on the weapons being used by Gadhafi's forces to target civilians in the rebel-held city of Misrata. Juppe spoke on France-Info radio the day after Libyan rebels rejected a cease-fire proposal by African mediators because it did not insist that Gadhafi relinquish power.

"NATO has to play its role in full. NATO wanted to take the military command of the operations," Juppe said.

France's frustration with the stalemate on the ground, where Libyan rebels have struggled to capitalize on Western air attacks, has been echoed across Western capitals.

But at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Dutch Brig. Gen. Mark Van Uhm responded that the alliance was successfully enforcing an arms embargo against Libya, patrolling a no-fly zone and protecting civilians in the North African nation.

"I think with the assets we have, we're doing a great job," Van Uhm told reporters.