NATO would like to see the United Nations assume the leading role in Libya's transition to democracy once Moamer Kadhafi leaves power, alliance chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Tuesday.

His comments came the same day a Moscow daily quoted a senior Russian official as saying that the Libyan leader was now willing to cede power in exchange for specific security guarantees.

Rasmussen said one day after meeting Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that "to accommodate the legitimate aspirations of the Libyan people, it is necessary that Kadhafi leaves power.

"After that, it is necessary to ensure a transition to democracy. I would like to stress that we do not foresee a leading NATO role in a post-Kadhafi period," he told reporters in Russia's second city.

"We want the United Nations to take the lead in this effort, to assist the Libyan people in their transition to democracy," Rasmussen said.

His comments came as the Libyan rebels prepared for a push into territories around Kadhafi's stronghold capital Tripoli.

A top official for the rebels' National Transitional Council said on Monday that the opposition had rejected a brief offer for Kadhafi to step down and remain in internal exile in Libya.

A top Russian official told the respected Kommersant business daily that he was also aware of such a proposal being made.

The unnamed Russian official went on to add that Kadhafi was now willing to cede power on certain terms.

"The colonel is sending signals that he is ready to cede power in exchange for security guarantees," Kommersant daily quoted the unnamed Russian official as saying.

The Russian source added that France appeared the country most willing to play a part by unfreezing some of the Kadhafi family's accounts and promising to help him avoid trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

The official did not reveal the source of his information.

earlier related report
Libya rebels no longer need French arms drops: Paris
Paris (AFP) July 5, 2011 - Rebels fighting Libyan ruler Moamer Kadhafi no longer need France to drop weapons to them since they are getting more organised and can arrange to arm themselves, Paris said Tuesday.

"There is emerging a political order distinct from that of Tripoli," French Defence Minister Gerard Longuet told reporters.

"The (rebel) territories are organising their autonomy... That is why the parachute drops are no longer necessary."

He added: "This autonomy allows them to establish relations with outside partners, including when it comes to self-defence.

"But that is not the business of the coalition and it is not the business of of resolution 1973," one of the UN Security Council resolutions under which France and NATO allies launched strikes on Kadhafi's military sites.

France said last week that it supplied light arms including rifles and rocket launchers to the rebels for "self-defence" in line with a UN resolution and that it informed NATO and the Security Council of its plan to do so.

Russia had criticised the arms drops and France's NATO ally Britain had expressed reservations.

UN Security Council Resolution 1970, passed in February, prohibited states from providing any kind of arms to Libya. Resolution 1973 in March authorised nations "to take all necessary measures" to help protect civilians.

Longuet was cautious about the rebels' chances of defeating Kadhafi in a major planned offensive on Tripoli.

They have a "growing capacity to organise politically and militarily" but are "currently not in a stabilised, centralised system," he said.

Kadhafi's government said on Monday that its forces intercepted two boats in waters west of Tripoli loaded with weapons from Qatar.

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