Gaddafi Now Trying To Gain International Support For His Regime

Such a situation would be useful. The Libyan people would understand their real aims, to take Libya under their control, to take their freedoms and to take their oil and all Libyan people will take up arms and fight.
Gaddafi, on the result of a no-fly zone if instituted by the West

Of course, Gaddafi has already has taken Libya under his control, taken their freedoms (not to mention shooting them) and taken their oil--which is why the Libyan people have taken up arms and fought against him to begin with.

And now, Gaddafi has decided to take his powers of persuasion on the road, in search of international support for his regime:

Libyan leader Col. Moammar Gadhafi on Wednesday unleashed a diplomatic offensive to win international support for his embattled regime, while his opponents launched their own effort to gain recognition as the "sole legitimate representative of the Libyan people."

In Libya, meanwhile, Col. Gadhafis troops fought poorly armed rebel forces and blew up an oil pipeline and oil-storage facility.

The Libyan dictator dispatched envoys to Egypt, Portugal and Belgium ahead of meetings of the European Union and NATO in Brussels on Thursday and of the Arab League in Cairo on Saturday, sources in Egypt and Libya told The Washington Times.

Coming as it does after Libya's membership in the UN Human Rights Council has been suspended, one would think that his chances for success are nil. Then again, Libya was able to gain membership in the UN Human Rights Council--something that should never have happened to begin with.

The opposition is meeting leaders as well, hoping to gain recognition as the sole representatives of the Libyan people. Ideally, the backing the opposition would receive from the West would go beyond mere words.

Back in Libya, Gaddafi and his followers are not giving up.
The longer the West dilly-dallies over what actions to take, the more unreliable and weak it looks--and protesters in other Muslim countries are taking note.

And the inaction by the West has left the door open to an unlikely source of aid for the opposition in Libya: Egypt.

Egypt, still grappling with a revolution that toppled President Hosni Mubarak in February, is reported to be quietly aiding rebel forces seeking to oust Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

This is seen as part of a drive by the transitional regime in Cairo to restore Egypt's leadership of the Arab world.

...The U.S. global security consultancy Stratfor says these troops "have played a key role in quietly providing weaponry and training to Libyan opposition forces while trying to organize a political command in the east."

While the West risks losing influence in the Middle East, Egypt--which is still trying to get on track following the ouster of Mubarak--is quietly filling the gap.

Which will only strengthen the perception that the West is unreliable.
Technorati Tag: Libya.