Rules of engagement

Outside Afghanistan, the administration should be careful about how it applies Mr. Bush's demand that nations prove themselves either allies or enemies in the fight against terrorism. As in the Cold War, such black-and-white distinctions are not always useful; some countries will inevitably fall into a gray area, willing to help the United States in some ways while resisting it in others.

To label some as friends -- say, Pakistan or Russia -- and therefore ignore their lack of democracy or brutal tactics would be a mistake. So would the hasty demonstration of other states, like Syria or Yemen, who with skillful prodding and pressure might be induced to take far-reaching steps against terrorists without necessarily changing their underlying suspicion or hostility towards the United States.

In the end, no tactic -- whether military or diplomatic, criminal or covert -- will be entirely successful in Afghanistan or anywhere else. To succeed, the Bush administration will need to be both determined to take whatever steps will root out the most terrorists -- and shrews in judging, from country to country, what is most likely to work.

-- The Washington Post