Responsibility for leading and conducting this mission – now called Operation Unified Protector – has shifted to an integrated NATO command. Going forward, the U.S. military will provide the capabilities that others cannot provide either in kind or in scale – such as electronic warfare, aerial refueling, lift, search and rescue, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support. Accordingly, we will, in coming days, significantly ramp down our commitment of other military capabilities and resources.

The NATO-led mission, like its predecessor, is a limited one. It will maintain pressure on Qadhafi’s remaining forces to prevent attacks on civilians, enforce the no-fly zone and arms embargo, and provide humanitarian relief.
There will be no American boots on the ground in Libya.