So we'll do the best we can with what we've got:
The Pentagon is considering dispatching surveillance drones and other limited military support for a Somali government offensive against al-Qaida-linked insurgents, U.S. officials said, part of a cautious move to increase U.S. assistance to the anarchic African nation.
U.S. diplomats are pressing Somali leaders to detail the goals of the looming assault, in order to figure out the most appropriate ways the U.S. can help.
Determined to avoid a visible American footprint on the ground or fingerprints on Somalia's shaky government, U.S. officials are struggling to find the right balance between seizing the opportunity to take out al-Qaida insurgents there and avoiding the appearance of a U.S. occupation.
When you can't pacify and nation-build so locals can provide security, you pound the enemy when they get too big. For quite a while in Anbar in Iraq, that's what we had to do before we could send more troops there and until Iraqi troops and locals could join us to resist the jihadis.
So this is hardly ideal for the long run, since the jihadis can regroup and rebuild eventually; but until local Somalis can step up, it's all that we're likely to do.
