WASHINGTON - Leaders of the United States, Britain and France are vowing to push ahead with their mission in Libya until the United Nations Security Council resolutions have been implemented and the Libyan people "can choose their own future."

US President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are showing their resolve in a joint op-ed article titled Libya's Pathway to Peace, which is scheduled to appear on the Friday edition of the International Herald Tribune, Le Figaro and Times of London.

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"So long as (Libyan leader Muammar) Gadhafi is in power, NATO must maintain its operations so that civilians remain protected and the pressure on the regime builds, then a genuine transition from dictatorship to an inclusive constitutional process can really begin, led by a new generation of leaders," they write.

"Britain, France and the United States will not rest until the United Nations Security Council resolutions have been implemented and the Libyan people can choose their own future," the leaders add.

Arguing for the military mission in Libya by citing support and authorization from the Arab countries and UN Security Council, the trio claim that "tens of thousands of lives have been protected," yet the people of Libya "are still suffering terrible horrors at Gadhafi's hands each and every day."

They write: "His rockets and shells rained down on defenseless civilians in Ajdabiyah, the city of Misrata is enduring a medieval siege, as Gadhafi tries to strangle its population into submission. The evidence of disappearances and abuses grows daily."

"Our duty and our mandate under UN Security Council Resolution 1973 is to protect civilians, and we are doing that. It is not to remove Gadhafi by force," they write.

"But it is impossible to imagine a future for Libya with Gadhafi in power. The International Criminal Court is rightly investigating the crimes committed against civilians and the grievous violations of international law. It is unthinkable that someone who has tried to massacre his own people can play a part in their future government," the trio write.

"Even as we continue our military operations today to protect civilians in Libya, we are determined to look to the future," they write. "We are convinced that better times lie ahead for the people of Libya, and a pathway can be forged to achieve just that. "

They call for a genuine end to violence, "marked by deeds not words" in which the government forces have to pull back from the cities they are besieging and return to their barracks.

Britain and France, which are spearheading the airstrikes on Libya after NATO took over control of the mission from the United States on March 31, have grown frustrated with the lack of support from allies as stalemate continues on the ground in Libya. But the United States has been resisting calls for its reasserting a stronger role in the airstrikes.