A statement by a retired UAE air chief also highlighted the geo-political complexities of the anti-Gaddafi coalition.
Speaking at a security seminar in the emirates on Tuesday, general Khaled al Bu-Ainnain said the UAE had originally planned to send 24 fighter jets to enforce the no-fly zone. But it will now limit itself to humanitarian support in revenge for Western powers failing to back the UAE line that unrest in Bahrain is down to Iran.
"The GCC [Gulf Co-operation Council] is supporting Bahrain, and they were not happy at all with the European and American attitude ... They think it's a matter of a civil movement, a matter of democracy. It is much beyond it," he said, according to local media.
"What's going on in Bahrain is beyond the understanding of our Western allies. It is a complete conspiracy of the Iranians."
http://euobserver.com/9/32042