The Obama administration is weighing its military options for Libya, conscious that it may need to flex U.S. muscle to help usher Moammar Gaddafi out of power but fearful of provoking even deadlier violence from a regime that has shown little restraint in attacking its own people.
The U.S. military also has no interest in getting bogged down in a third war. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said March 1 that any military action in the North African country must be carefully considered because it would have broad consequences for the region and the U.S. military, affecting even the effort in Afghanistan. And military leaders said it would be difficult to organize even the relatively modest threat of a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent Gaddafi from launching aerial assaults on his opponents.
"We also have to think about, frankly, the use of the U.S. military in another country in the Middle East," Gates said, a reference to the challenges involved with adding another war to the one in Iraq and the potential for backlash in the Arab world. 'We're sensitive about all of these things, but we will provide the president with a full range of options."
Gates' caution contrasted with the more strident tone adopted by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who warned that Libya "could become a peaceful democracy or it could face protracted civil war" amid continued violent clashes between government forces and those seeking Gaddafi's ouster.
Clinton told Congress the U.S. must lead an international response to the crisis, including expanding already tough financial and travel sanctions against Gaddafi, his family and confidants and possibly imposing a no-fly zone. "The United States continues to look at every single lever it can use against the Gadhafi regime," she said.
But the military seemed keen to temper the rhetoric. Gates said he had ordered two Navy amphibious warships into the Mediterranean Sea, along with an extra 400 Marines, in case they are needed to evacuate civilians or provide humanitarian relief. And while he did not rule out other options, such as providing air cover for Libyan rebels, he made clear he has little enthusiasm for direct military intervention, The Associated Press reports.
