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Washington, D.C. (The National Cathedral)
September 14, 2001



The United States of America is fighting a war against terrorists of 
global reach. The enemy is not a single political regime or person or 
religion or ideology. The enemy is terrorism -- premeditated, 
politically motivated violence perpetrated against innocents.

In many regions, legitimate grievances prevent the emergence of a 
lasting peace. Such grievances deserve to be, and must be, addressed 
within a political process. But no cause justifies terror. The United 
States will make no concessions to terrorist demands and strike no deals 
with them. We make no distinction between terrorists and those who 
knowingly harbor or provide aid to them.

The struggle against global terrorism is different from any other war in 
our history. It will be fought on many fronts against a particularly 
elusive enemy over an extended period of time. Progress will come 
through the persistent accumulation of successes -- some seen, some 
unseen.

Today our enemies have seen the results of what civilized nations can, 
and will, do against regimes that harbor, support, and use terrorism to 
achieve their political goals. Afghanistan has been liberated; coalition 
forces continue to hunt down the Taliban and al-Qaida. But it is not 
only this battlefield on which we will engage terrorists. Thousands of 
trained terrorists remain at large with cells in North America, South 
America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and across Asia.

Our priority will be first to disrupt and destroy terrorist 
organizations of global reach and attack their leadership; command, 
control, and communications; material support; and finances. This will 
have a disabling effect upon the terrorists' ability to plan and operate.

We will continue to encourage our regional partners to take up a 
coordinated effort that isolates the terrorists. Once the regional 
campaign localizes the threat to a particular state, we will help ensure 
the state has the military, law enforcement, political, and financial 
tools necessary to finish the task.

The United States will continue to work with our allies to disrupt the 
financing of terrorism. We will identify and block the sources of 
funding for terrorism, freeze the assets of terrorists and those who 
support them, deny terrorists access to the international financial 
system, protect legitimate charities from being abused by terrorists, 
and prevent the movement of terrorists' assets through alternative 
financial networks.

However, this campaign need not be sequential to be effective, the 
cumulative effect across all regions will help achieve the results we 
seek.

We will disrupt and destroy terrorist organizations by:

*	direct and continuous action using all the elements of national and 
international power. Our immediate focus will be those terrorist 
organizations of global reach and any terrorist or state sponsor of 
terrorism which attempts to gain or use weapons of mass destruction 
(WMD) or their precursors;

*	defending the United States, the American people, and our interests 
at home and abroad by identifying and destroying the threat before it 
reaches our borders. While the United States will constantly strive to 
enlist the support of the international community, we will not hesitate 
to act alone, if necessary, to exercise our right of self-defense by 
acting preemptively against such terrorists, to prevent them from doing 
harm against our people and our country; and

*	denying further sponsorship, support, and sanctuary to terrorists 
by convincing or compelling states to accept their sovereign 
responsibilities.


We will also wage a war of ideas to win the battle against international 
terrorism. This includes:

*	using the full influence of the United States, and working closely 
with allies and friends, to make clear that all acts of terrorism are 
illegitimate so that terrorism will be viewed in the same light as 
slavery, piracy, or genocide: behavior that no respectable government 
can condone or support and all must oppose;

*	supporting moderate and modern government, especially in the Muslim 
world, to ensure that the conditions and ideologies that promote 
terrorism do not find fertile ground in any nation;

*	diminishing the underlying conditions that spawn terrorism by 
enlisting the international community to focus its efforts and resources 
on areas most at risk; and

*	using effective public diplomacy to promote the free flow of 
information and ideas to kindle the hopes and aspirations of freedom of 
those in societies ruled by the sponsors of global terrorism.


While we recognize that our best defense is a good offense we are also 
strengthening America's homeland security to protect against and deter 
attack.

This Administration has proposed the largest government reorganization 
since the Truman Administration created the National Security Council 
and the Department of Defense. Centered on a new Department of Homeland 
Security and including a new unified military command and a fundamental 
reordering of the FBI, our comprehensive plan to secure the homeland 
encompasses every level of government and the cooperation of the public 
and the private sector.

This strategy will turn adversity into opportunity. For example, 
emergency management systems will be better able to cope not just with 
terrorism but with all hazards. Our medical system will be strengthened 
to manage not just bioterror, but all infectious diseases and 
mass-casualty dangers. Our border controls will not just stop 
terrorists, but improve the efficient movement of legitimate traffic.

While our focus is protecting America, we know that to defeat terrorism 
in today's globalized world we need support from our allies and friends. 
Wherever possible, the United States will rely on regional organizations 
and state powers to meet their obligations to fight terrorism. Where 
governments find the fight against terrorism beyond their capacities, we