NATO is finalizing its plans for "appropriate action" in support of the UN Security Council resolution on Libya, the alliance's secretary general said on Friday.
The UN Security Council voted on Thursday in favor of a new resolution on Libya that encompasses a no-fly zone and "all necessary measures" against forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. It also stipulates military action against Gaddafi's troops if he continues attacking civilians.
The resolution was approved by 10 council members, with Brazil, China, Germany, India and Russia abstaining.
"NATO welcomes the United Nations Security Council resolution. The resolution sends a strong and clear message from the entire international community to the Gaddafi regime: stop your brutal and systematic violence against the people of Libya immediately," NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said.
"NATO is now completing its planning in order to be ready to take appropriate action in support of the United Nations Security Council resolution," he said.
The ongoing violence in Libya, which began in mid-February, is believed to have claimed the lives of several thousand people. Gaddafi has denied the reports, saying the al-Qaeda terrorist network was spreading false casualty reports.
Earlier on Friday, NATO said it was ready to attack Gaddafi forces. A NATO source said the United States, Britain, France and Canada were among the countries likely to carry out the first airstrikes.
BRUSSELS, March 18 (RIA Novosti)
