Reasons For America’s Leading From Behind In The Military Intervention Inlibyan Civil War

In February 2011, because of the suppression of Qaddafi’s troops, peaceful anti-government demonstration in Libya gradually evolved into a civil war between anti-government military and government force. According to Resolution No. 1973 of the UN Security Council, NATO troops led by America, France and Britain launched a military intervention against Libya to help the Libyan rebels seize power. In this massive international military intervention, America, changing its strong style in the Kosovo war, Afghan war and Iraqi war, was not only hesitant to implement a military strike against Libya, but also followed France and Britain. Besides, America withdrew from the air strike early and surrendered military command in Libya to NATO. This thesis tries to explain America’s unusual strategy in Libyan Civil War.This thesis firstly analyzes the negative influences of Afghan War and Iraqi War on American public attitudes and policy makers, sluggish pace of economic recovery after subprime mortgage crisis, problems that America needs to fix to reproduce prosperity, as well as contradictions within traditional American diplomatic thoughts to explain America’s domestic constraints, then unscrambles America’s international challenges from redistribution of global power, pressure from international responsibilities, as well as America’s declined prestige and Anti-Americanism to interpret America’s international restrictions, proving that America’s leading from behind in the military intervention in Libyan Civil War resulted from problems and challenges that America suffered domestically and internationally.