American officials discuss options over Libya

American officials discuss options over Libya; The Voice of Russia

Senator Joe Lieberman has suggested that the US Army should arm the Libyan opposition and provide it with training in using anti-aircraft defenses. The proposal has already found both supporters and opponents among US government officials. Meanwhile President Obama for the first time has publicly stated that Moammar Gaddafi must give up his power. Does it mean that America is ready to engage in military action and how wise would it be to open a second front, while the Afghanistan problem is still far from solution? Lieberman’s suggestion raises another reasonable question: doesn’t America have enough sad experience with arming militants in the Middle East?

On Tuesday Senator Joe Lieberman suggested that while the US military is mulling an option of enacting a no-fly zone over Libya, it could at least provide training of the opposition in using anti-aircraft defenses. Lieberman believes that enacting a no-fly zone above Libya and arming the opposition would cause a serious impact on Moammar Gaddafi, who has ordered air-bombings of opposition-held areas of the country.

"While we're considering the no-fly zone, and I hear all the concerns about how it would be ... another alternative I'm raising is that we might provide the Libyan opposition with the capacity to defend themselves from Gadhafi's aircraft," Lieberman suggested.

US officials – including Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton – said that both enacting a no-fly zone and arming the opposition forces are difficult decisions. "I think we are a long way from making that decision," stated Hillary Clinton speaking before the Senate Foreign Relations committee. ...