US to Go for Limited Missile Attack on Libyan Air Defenses after French Strike

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (L) and France's Prime Minister Francois Fillon take part in the Paris Summit on Libya at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, 19 March 2011. EPA/BGNES

The USA is preparing a limited missile strike against the air defense of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi after France fired the first shots of the Western effort to enforce a UN-authorized no-fly zone.

American ships and aircraft in the Mediterranean did not take part in the French air strike against a Libyan target Saturday evening.

Anonymous US officials have indicated that the American administration intends to keep its involvement in the international military operation against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi limited – at least in the early stages of the air strikes, the Houston Chronicle reported.

The scope of the US involvement is said to depend on the response of the Gaddafi regime to the initial air strikes by France and other nations.

Thus, the US appears to intend to leave most of the work for enforcing the no-fly zone over Libya to its partners, and to focus on protecting air missions carried by the French, the British, and the others by striking Libyan air defenses with sea-based Tomahawk cruise missiles.

"Our consensus was strong and our resolve is clear. The people of Libya must be protected and in the absence of an immediate end to the violence against civilians our coalition is prepared to act and to act with urgency," US President Barack Obama said regarding the situation in Libya during a visit to Brazil on Saturday.

After taking part in Saturday's summit in Paris on the enforcement of the no-fly zone in Libya, US State Secretary Hillary Clinton declared that Libyan dictator Gaddafi continues to tackle the Libyan rebels in spite of the will of the international community.

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