International community will continue to press Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to leave, the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday.
Libya declared ceasefire on Friday in order to comply with a new UN resolution that gives the go-ahead to a no-fly zone over the country.
"We are not going to be responsive or impressed by words, we would have to see actions on the ground," Clinton said at the State Department. "And that is not yet at all clear."
"We will continue to work with our partners and the international community to press Gaddafi to leave," she said.
The ongoing violence in Libya, which began in mid-February, is believed to have claimed the lives of several thousand people. Gaddafi has denied the reports, saying the al-Qaeda terrorist network was spreading false casualty figures.
"Colonel Gaddafi's refusal to hear the repeated calls [and] up until now to halt violence against his own people has left us with no other choice but to pursue this course of action," Clinton said.
The United Nations Security Council voted on Thursday in favor of a new resolution on Libya that encompasses a no-fly zone and "all necessary measures" against forces loyal to Gaddafi. It also stipulates military action against Gaddafi's troops if he continues attacking civilians.
NATO said on Friday it was finalizing its plans for "appropriate action" in support of the UN Security Council resolution on Libya, the alliance's secretary general.
WASHINGTON, March 18 (RIA Novosti)
