The Obama administration must be wary, though, of the perception of the US military in the region – particularly “if Qaddafi says, ‘Ah, American imperialism once again,” and tries to rally supporters, says Mr. Donnelly of AEI.
For this reason, US officials are determined to work with international partners on any actions involving Libya. Yet US officials must also be wary of appearing passive in the eyes of Libyan rebel forces, who have already won large swaths of land along the Mediterranean coast, says Donnelly.
“One of the things we have to start looking at is how it’s going to look to the rebels [who will weigh], ‘Did you help us, hurt us, or just watch?' ” he adds.
Gates said Tuesday that the US has not received any requests from rebel forces for air strikes against Qaddafi. But reports suggest that Libyan rebel leaders in Benghazi were considering asking the United Nations to back air strikes against key military targets.
The other question Pentagon planners must ask themselves is to what extent time is of the essence.
If Qaddafi decided to increase his control and ramp up oppressive measures, including killing, then it is better to intervene more quickly, says Raymond of the US Army War College. Yet Pentagon planners must also consider that if Qaddafi “thinks he has a closing window of opportunity, then it could accelerate the decision to do widespread killing, because if he doesn’t do it today, next week may be too late,” says Raymond. “So there’s a very fine balancing act here.”
What is clear, Gates said, is that Qaddafi has no intention of leaving voluntarily. “All I can say is that sometimes you have to actually listen to what people say,” Gates told reporters. “And he’s saying he’s not leaving.”
