The NATO coalition against Gaddafi appears to be falling apart. French defence minister Gerard Longuet's remarks in a recent TV interview that military action against Libya has failed, and it is time for diplomacy, caused irritations. And yet, a victory over the Colonel at the helm of affairs in Tripoli is nowhere in sight. NATO is faced with a debacle, arousing memories of the Suez debacle of 1956, when Eisenhower simply ordered the British, French and Israeli forces to abandon the effort to overthrow Nasser.