Deauville: Russian resistance to the NATO-led bombing campaign in Libya caused a rift at talks among world powers on Thursday, France's president said, highlighting the difficulty in making sure Arab uprisings have peaceful endings.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy admitted at a Group of Eight summit in Normandy that the international military operation has posed problems. But he insisted that the 2-month-old operation has been necessary to protect civilians and encourage democratic movements throughout the Arab world.
"I'm not saying the intervention we have made...hasn't posed problems. It's not an easy decision to commit soldiers," he said. He said Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi "has to leave power."
Sarkozy met on Thursday with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and said "there is a big convergence of views with Russia."
Russia's ambassador to France, Alexander Orlov, told The Associated Press that the NATO campaign has gone "too far." As a result, he said, Russia doesn't want to support a UN resolution warning Syria about its crackdown on anti-government protesters.
Discussion of Arab uprisings has dominated the G-8 summit, overshadowing concerns about deficits and joblessness in the Group of Eight nations: the United States, France, Britain, Russia, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada.
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