NATO Chief Says Libya Mission Closer to End

NATO's mission in Libya has moved significantly closer to success and will end soon, the military alliance's secretary general said on Monday.

"Our operation to protect civilians has moved significantly closer to success, but we are not there yet," Rasmussen told a news conference, reiterating that air strikes will continue as long as civilians are under threat.

He said the Libya mission, in its sixth month, had provided NATO vital lessons as it showed the Western alliance's strengths but also its heavy reliance on U.S. military power.

While he said he could not give a precise date for the mission's end, Rasmussen said: "I believe it will come soon."

It will be up to NATO's decision-making body, the North Atlantic Council, to determine when Operation Unified Protector can end, based on the assessment of military commanders, he said.

"What will play a crucial role is the capability of the (rebel) National Transitional Council to actually ensure effective protection of the civilian population," Rasmussen said.

The rebels, who have taken control of Tripoli and most of Libya, are readying for battle in Gadhafi’s last strongholds of Bani Walid and Sirte.

The deposed Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi’s capture would not be a "decisive factor," the NATO chief added.

"Let me stress that individuals, including Gadhafi, are not a target of our operation," he said.

NATO aircraft have carried out more than 8,000 flying sorties to identify or strike targets since March under a U.N. mandate to protect civilians.

While the Gadhafi regime has accused NATO of killing more than 1,000 civilians, the alliance rejected such claims, save for one incident in Tripoli in June, when NATO admitted that a missile misfired in a bombing which the Libyan government said killed five people.

The war in Libya provided several lessons that the alliance will take stock of at its next summit in Chicago in May 2012, Rasmussen said.

The conflict stood out as the first NATO operation in which European and Canadian allies, not the United States, were in the lead, Rasmussen said.

"But this mission could not have been done without capabilities which only the United States can offer," he said.

The United States, France and Britain led an international coalition to launch the first salvos against Gadhafi’s regime on March 19, but the U.S. military retreated into a support role when NATO took over 12 days later.

Although the United States operated out of the limelight, the U.S. military provided key assets including drones, intelligence and refueling aircraft, Rasmussen said.

His comments echoed complaints by former U.S. defense secretary Robert Gates, who warned in June that NATO faced a "dismal" future after years of shrinking defense budgets and over-reliance on the United States.

"Let me put it bluntly. Those capabilities are vital for all of us, more allies should be willing to obtain them," Rasmussen said. "That is a real challenge and we will have to find the solutions at the next NATO summit."