 Strongly motivated by a widespread aversion in Germany to the use of military force, he shared with Chancellor Merkel a deep scepticism about a no-fly zone as it was suggested by France and the United Kingdom.At a UN Security Council meeting in March 2011, Westerwelle abstained in the vote on United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 to establish a no-fly zone, along with veto powers Russia and China as well as Brazil and India.Shortly after, he expelled five Libyan diplomats for intimidating Libyan citizens living in Germany.