Libya worries dominate Defense Ministers' meeting

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen briefly attended the meeting, before flying back to Brussels for a NATO Council meeting he called over Libya this afternoon.

Hende said that the EU's most important task was to evacuate the few thousand EU citizens trapped in the country. He added that there is a crisis at Tripoli airport, which was beginning to resemble a refugee camp. Evacuation has begun over the air and water. Hungarian diplomats stationed in Tripoli are coordinating these operations on behalf of the EU, as Hungary is holding the presidency, he pointed out.

Hende and Rasmussen agreed that both the NATO and the EU are faced with an enormous challenge regarding Libya. Hende said the crisis and the experiences drawn from it will advance cooperation between NATO and EU and move it out of a prolonged deadlock.

"The crisis in Libya has absolutely dominated our meeting," he stated. Every participant had addressed the situation, he said.

In response to a question on Hungary's role, Hende said it cannot initiate any steps despite its position as the holder of the presidency. Under the Lisbon Treaty, after the setup of the European External Action Service, it is the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs who takes the leading role in defence policy decisions, he said.

Before the two-day meeting ending on Friday, Catherine Ashton, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, said in Godollo that "the European Union does not plan any military action in connection with the situation in Libya," but added that restrictive measures were being considered.

The EU would "exert the strongest possible pressure" to stop the violence, she said, adding that sanctions would range from a flight ban, arms embargo, the freezing of foreign accounts, and measures related to the transport and sale of oil and gas.

The EU will cooperate closely with the United States and the UN's Security Council on this matter, Ashton said, adding that no decision is expected at the Godollo meeting.