What Is The U.S. Plan For Libya?

A pragmatic plan for U.S. success in Libya must start with resolving some fundamental contradictions in our actions and our words.

President Obama needs to articulate why Libya matters, how we will support the rebellion and how we believe Colonel Qaddafi will exit the scene..The international community spent three weeks avoiding military action while the rebels were routed, only to now be effectively defending a nearly defeated force. The United Nations resolution authorizes us to stop attacks on civilians, yet the rebels are armed. President Obama says that it is American policy that Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi must go, but the military operations are not aimed at that outcome -- and instead we will employ sanctions to try to achieve it.

The U.S. military is not targeting Colonel Qaddafi in its effort to protect civilians, but he is the individual most responsible for civilian deaths. U.S. officials have said that we are not in the lead, but the U.S. has flown more sorties than any other country. The U.N. placed an arms embargo on both Colonel Qaddafi and the rebels, which has locked in the military’s advantage over the opposition. The military strikes began following an Arab League request, but now the Arab League says this is not exactly what they had in mind.

Enumerating these contradictions is not to say that this military operation can’t succeed; indeed, there are serious reasons why it must -- not least of which is to avoid the perception in the Middle East that the best way for dictators to deal with democratic revolutions is to spill blood. It is to say, however, that President Obama needs to articulate why Libya matters, how we will support the rebellion (or whether we merely wish them well as we bomb around them) and how we believe Colonel Qaddafi will exit the scene.

Outlining a clear plan for U.S. success requires outlining clear objectives for our military actions. This, in turn, requires resolving some of these contradictions -- and soon.