America wants to work with friends, with allies, with people of good will, to make this a better world.

Since the days of Peter the Great, Russians have been maybe Europeans who didn't share in the enlightenment and the reformation, or are they Mongol Asians with the European veneer. And they've gone back and forth.

Saddam's ouster will not necessarily lead to the same result, since Iraq lacks democratic traditions. Democracy doesn't just consist of holding elections.

We can't make China a friend, but we can behave to make them an enemy.

But the central point is that any campaign against Iraq, whatever the strategy, cost and risks, is certain to divert us for some indefinite period from our war on terrorism.

Perhaps the most troubling area in the world goes from the Balkans through the Middle East and in Central Asia.

If Iraq were to descend into chaos, the Europeans would feel the effects just as much as we would.