www.DemocraticFundamentalism.org - Archives - Historical Events - The War On Terrorism - 6/01/2002 - Bush Says U.S. Must Prepare for Preemptive Action

	Globalization - Countries - United_States see also Archives - Historical Events - 911 Bush Says U.S. Must Prepare for Preemptive Action By Adam Entous, Reuters 6/1/2002



	WEST POINT, N.Y. (Reuters) - Without mentioning Iraq by name, President Bush told future U.S. military leaders on Saturday they must be prepared to launch preemptive strikes to keep "terrorists and tyrants" from obtaining weapons of mass destruction. "We face a threat with no precedent," Bush told the first class to graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point since the Sept. 11 attacks. Echoing the dire warnings of other administration officials, Bush said: "The dangers have not passed ... because we know the terrorists have more money and more men and more plans." In a preview of the challenges that await them, Bush told the cadets that the United States must uncover terrorist cells in 60 or more countries, and prevent America's enemies from acquiring the nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. "Our enemies have declared this very intention and have been caught seeking these terrible weapons," Bush told the graduates, who wore "dress gray" cutaway coats with gleaming brass buttons. Ceremonial swords dangled at their sides. Bush did not single out Iraq, which he has denounced as part of an "axis of evil" threatening to spread weapons of mass destruction. But officials have suggested it would be the next U.S. target in the war against terrorism. "We cannot put our faith in the words of tyrants who solemnly sign nonproliferation treaties and then systematically break them," Bush said. "If we wait for threats to fully materialize, we will have waited too long. We must take the battle to the enemy, disrupt his plans and confront the worst threats before they emerge." In the face of concerns among European allies that an attack against Baghdad would be rash and destabilizing, Bush said last week he had "no war plans on my desk." But in his address at West Point, Bush vowed to hold his ground. "In the world we have entered the only path to safety is the path of action and this nation will act," he said, adding that all Americans must be "ready for preemptive action when necessary to defend our liberty and to defend our lives." Bush brushed aside critics who accuse him of acting unilaterally, saying, "Some may worry that it is somehow undiplomatic or impolite to speak the language of right and wrong. I disagree." Bush flew to West Point from Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland where he was spending the weekend. Aides said the president was monitoring developments in the war on terrorism, as well as the standoff between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan. "From the Middle East to South Asia, we are gathering broad international coalitions to increase the pressure for peace," Bush said. THREAT WITHOUT PRECEDENT Bush said the Sept. 11 attacks and the anti-terror campaign that started in Afghanistan have rapidly redefined military strategy and tactics. "Enemies in the past needed great armies and great industrial capabilities to endanger the American people and our nation," said Bush, whose administration has come under fire for its handling of intelligence about the Sept. 11 assaults. By contrast, he added, "the attacks of Sept. 11 required a few hundred thousand dollars in the hands of a few dozen evil and deluded men. All of the chaos and suffering they caused came at much less than the cost of a single tank." PRAISE FOR CADETS Hailing West Point on its bicentennial, Bush praised this year's graduating class of 958 cadets for their willingness to serve and sacrifice for the nation. Comparing them to the soldiers that defeated Germany and Japan in World War II, Bush told the academy's 2002 graduates that "history has also issued its call to your generation." "We will defend the peace against threats from terrorists and tyrants. We will preserve the peace by building good relations among the great powers. And will we will extend the peace by encouraging free and open societies on every continent." "Building this just peace is America's opportunity and America's duty. From this day forward, it is your challenge as well, and we will meet this challenge together," Bush said. At the end of the ceremony near the banks of the Hudson River, the newly minted second lieutenants tossed their hats high in the air to celebrate their graduation.