>Just as Iraq cast a pall over the idea of intervention, Libya will give a fillip to those who see the campaign as a template that can be applied elsewhere in the Muslim world. But a world in which a small group of former colonial powers can run roughshod over the interests of poorer countries has few takers in the capitals of the rising powers. And their resistance will not remain passive – China, for example, is already well practised at coercive diplomacy. Last year, after a naval spat with Japan, it simply cut off the supply of rare earth metals. The next time that China is unhappy with Nato … Continue reading >Shashank Joshi