The Inherent Risk Of Unilateralism

The French invaded Ivory Coast without UN approval or building a coalition. That, in fact is unilateralism. They do have some assistance, UN troops, which is the same as having no assistance. They just may be knocking at our door for help soon:

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) -- Ivory Coast warplanes bombed French peacekeepers in the rebel-held north on Saturday, killing eight French troops and wounding 23 others, French officials said, marking the gravest-ever confrontation between France and its war-divided former West African colony.
France scrambled three Mirage fighter jets in response, and separately hit back by destroying two Ivory Coast Sukhoi fighter jets, French military spokesman Col. Henry Aussavy said.
French infantry destroyed the Ivory Coast aircraft on the ground at an airport in Ivory Coast's capital, Yamoussoukro, Aussavy said, "in retaliation."
The retaliatory attacks threatened a grave escalation of Ivory Coast's civil war, reignited by the government on Thursday after a more than one-year cease-fire.

It's a quagmire! To bad for Chirac it won't be in the cards for the US to bail them out of this one. Maybe they can seek help from fellow members of the EU who have the huevos and know-how to fight such as Poland, Italy, Britain and Holland.