Interesting article on the involvement of Egypt, the UAE and Qatar in Libya’s deteriorating political situation. Historically, the logic of alliances has meant “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”. It has often been said that in the Middle East “the enemy of my enemy is still my enemy” because of the complex and overlapping rivalries that have existed in the region. Now we can add a third permutation: “the friend of my friend is my enemy”. Egypt the UAE and Qatar have long been considered part of the conservative club of Arab states. All three are partners in the anti-IS coalition and Qatar and the UAE are part of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Still it seems to be the UAE and Egypt versus Qatar in Libya. The Middle East is the place where neo-realist alliance theory goes to die.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/10/24/is-libya-a-proxy-war/
IR Theory & Practice 