No quick fix

American forces are being routed to the Gulf region, though few details emerge. The fact that a reluctant Pakistan has granted overflight rights to the U.S. gives a reliable indication of what is envisioned.

However, the Bush administration has rejected angry calls for immediate strikes. It is moving methodically and, it insists, with a clear understanding of the complexities involved.

The U.S. has sound political reasons for choosing a methodical approach. It cannot risk raising false hopes by hasty moves which fail; the worst possible thing would be a thunderous attack inside Afghanistan, for example, which might be followed not long after by yet another terrorist outrage.

Secretary of State Colin Powell emphasizes that an effective anti-terrorist war requires economic, political, diplomatic and financial tools, as well as force, against its eventual targets.

He adds in haste, "... we are assembling the evidence that will tell us, in a way that the world will fully understand, who is responsible for this." Only then will the U.S. "... rip the network up" followed by a sustained global assault against terrorism. Whether this campaign can succeed is beyond knowing.

-- The South China Morning Post, Hong Kong