WASHINGTON, March 1 (Reuters) - U.S. warships sailed toward Libya on Tuesday as Washington warned that the oil-producing North African country could descend into chaos unless embattled leader Muammar Gaddafi relinquished power. The repositioning of U.S. ships and aircraft closer to Libya is widely seen as a symbolic show of force since neither the United States nor its NATO allies have shown any appetite for direct military intervention in the turmoil that has seen Gaddafi lose control of large swaths of his country.
The White House said the ships were being redeployed in preparation for possible humanitarian efforts. But it stressed it "was not taking any options off the table," diplomatic language that signals military action is still a possibility.
But beyond flexing military muscle and freezing a record $30 billion in Libyan assets, Washington has limited influence on events inside Libya. Republican lawmakers and others have pressed President Barack Obama to do more militarily, but they have focused mainly on imposing a "no-fly" zone.......read on
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