A top official in the Bush administration on Sunday defended US engagement in years past with Libya's Moamer Kadhafi, saying doing so got weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of a "megalomaniac."

Washington, which had isolated Tripoli for decades in the aftermath of terror attacks on Americans blamed on Kadhafi's regime, launched a tentative rapprochement with Libya nearly a decade ago which eventually led to normalization of diplomatic relations after Kadhafi renounced nuclear weapons.

"It was a very difficult decision," Bush's national security advisor Stephen Hadley told CNN talk show "State of the Union."

"But what we got for being willing to resume relations with Libya was that he gave up his weapons of mass destruction, his nuclear program, his chemical weapon program."

In late 2003 Kadhafi renounced all attempts to develop a non-conventional arsenal, clearing the way for the restoration of diplomatic relations with the United States in May 2006.

Kadhafi, Hadley said, essentially "got out of the terror business" and provided $1.5 billion compensation to families of victims of the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am flight over Scotland that killed 270 people, and for a Berlin disco bombing that killed two Americans and hurt 50 others in 1986.

The deal burnished Kadhafi's reputation at the time, as the West hailed his transformational move in which he pledged major reforms.

It allowed the regime to sign billions of dollars in business deals in Europe, which also lifted an arms embargo against Libya, and receive huge amounts of American aid.

Hadley insisted that getting Kadhafi "out of the weapons of mass destruction business was a good deal," despite the current violence, in which thousands are believed to have been killed in a raging uprising and US President Barack Obama demanding Kadhafi leave power.

"I think the wisdom of what we did is shown by the fact that, think about if this megalomaniac now had chemical weapons in his possession and had the option of using those against the Libyan people?"

Kadhafi, who has vowed a fight to the death, ordered his supporters last month to "capture the rats" and crush the uprising against his rule.

Former Kadhafi loyalists have said they had no doubt he would unleash hellish violence against his own people to stay in power.

"This is a man who has shown that there's only one choice for Libyan people: either I rule you or I kill you," Libya's former immigration minister Ali Errishi, who resigned shortly after the uprising began nearly three weeks ago, told CNN Sunday.

earlier related report

US 'dragging their feet' on Kadhafi: Libyan ex-minister
Washington (AFP) March 6, 2011 –

The United States may have missed an opportunity to oust Moamer Kadhafi by "dragging its feet" on aiding rebels in the first weeks of Libya's uprising, a former minister said Sunday.

"We asked for help when he was on the ropes," Libya's former immigration minister Ali Errishi, who resigned shortly after the uprising began nearly three weeks ago, told CNN talk show "State of the Union."

"I said, you give us little help now. It was just a little nudge," when what was needed was greater US military support at the height of the chaos as Kadhafi loyalists were on the back foot when several key government and military figures abandoned the regime, Errishi said.

"They were dragging their feet, I don't know why," said the former minister. "We asked — we don't want a no-fly zone actually — we just want air cover."

He also stressed he had "no doubt" that Kadhafi would refuse to negotiate terms for his own departure after more than 41 years in power in the North African nation.

"This is a man who has shown that there's only one choice for Libyan people: either I rule you or I kill you."

US President Barack Obama has insisted that all options remained on the table with respect to Libya, including military action.

Calls grew louder Sunday for establishment of a no-fly zone over Libya, where Kadhafi's military forces have unleashed deadly airstrikes on rebel forces and civilians as the regime struggles to maintain control.

Stephen Hadley, national security advisor for Obama's predecessor George W. Bush, said it was time for the administration to look at more direct diplomatic or military options — including arming the rebels.

"Obviously, if there is a way to get weapons into the hands of the rebels, if we can get anti-aircraft systems so that they can enforce a no-fly zone over their own territory, that would be helpful," Hadley told CNN on the same show.

Former New Mexico governor and one-time US envoy to the United Nations Bill Richardson also said Sunday it was time to "covertly arm the rebels" and enforce a no-fly zone over Libya.

Obama's 2008 rival for the presidency, Republican US Senator John McCain, also reiterated his call for a no-fly zone, saying it would "send a signal to Kadhafi" that Obama was serious in his call for the Libyan leader to step down.

"We can't risk allowing Kadhafi to massacre people from the air," he said, but warned against full military intervention, saying a "ground intervention would not be appropriate."

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