US encouraged by Libya rebel push, embassy open

The United States believes Libyan rebel advances are choking off Muammar Gaddafi's forces in the capital Tripoli and significantly increasing pressure on the Libyan leader, the US State Department said on Monday.

State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said an envoy from the rebel's National Transitional Council had reopened Libya's embassy in Washington, further formalizing ties between the United States and the rebel government.

"What we are seeing is an effort by the rebels to choke off the access routes into Tripoli and to up the pressure on Gaddafi," Nuland told a news briefing.

"We're encouraged by the progress that they're making, and they are increasing the pressure on Tripoli significantly," she said.

Libyan rebels said on Monday they had seized a second strategic town near Tripoli within 24 hours, completing the encirclement of the capital in the boldest advances yet of the six-month uprising against Muammar Gaddafi.

Nuland's upbeat assessment marked a changing tone in Washington, where until recently frustration over the slow progress on the battlefield and internal divisions among the rebels had undercut optimism.

It remains unclear whether the rebel gains, particularly in the western coastal city of Zawiyah, mark a turning point in the five-month-old war. The rebels have gained territory before, only to lose it in the face of counterattacks by Gaddafi loyalists.

A US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters the advance in Zawiyah could not yet be seen as a "game changer," stressing that the rebels did not have complete control of the town.

"It appears that the military advances and fractures within Gadaffi's regime have reached a possible turning point," said Brian Katulis, a security expert at the Center for American Progress think tank.

"But the lack of a clear roadmap on the political transition is worrisome," he said. "Even if Gadaffi and his inner core steps down or is removed by force, it is not clear that if there's a notional plan for what to do next. The recent signs of infighting among rebel groups are troubling and the risks of a complete breakdown within Libya remain."

There have also been reports that Libyan Interior Minister Nasser al-Mabruk Abdullah, who flew to Egypt with members of his family on Monday, was defecting. Nuland said she was unable to confirm those reports, but said it was clear that "a steady march" of senior Libyan officials were abandoning the embattled leader.

"Senior members of his government seem not to want to stand with him in Libya but are voting with their feet," she said.

Libya's embassy in Washington, shuttered since February when the uprising broke out, has formally reopened with former Ambassador Ali Aujali, who renounced Gaddafi to support the rebels, acting as the official envoy of the governing council, Nuland said.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last month announced the United States was formally recognizing the National Transitional Council as Libya's legitimate government, a move intended to underscore Gaddafi's diplomatic isolation and open access to frozen funds.

Nuland said Aujali would resume control over the embassy's immediate assets, but that the United States was not yet in a position to follow through on vows to unlock more than $34 billion in Libyan assets.

"In terms of the larger pool of money, we're still working through the various legal and financial issues that we have to work through," she said.

Nuland said the United States had yet to be briefed on the current round of talks between rebel representatives and Gaddafi emissaries in Tunisia, but that they were expected to focus again on demands that Gaddafi "step down fully from power and allow a democratic transition to go forward."