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No Deterrents in U.S. War on Terror - Cheney Sat May 31, 2003 12:55 PM ET WEST POINT (Reuters) - The United States will not pursue deterrence or containment policies in its so-called war on terrorism but would instead seek to utterly destroy its enemies, Vice President Dick Cheney said on Saturday. In a speech to the 2003 graduating class of the U.S. Military Academy, Cheney also warned that the United States remained willing to use its military might against any nation supporting terrorists. "The battle of Iraq was a major victory in the war on terror but the war itself is far from over," Cheney told the more than 840 graduating cadets, most of whom will pursue careers as officers in the U.S. Army. "We cannot allow ourselves to grow complacent, we cannot forget that the terrorists remain determined to kill as many Americans as possible both abroad and here at home, and they are still seeking weapons of mass destruction to use against," he said. "With such an enemy, no peace treaty is possible, no policy of containment or deterrent will prove effective -- the only way to deal with this threat is to destroy it completely and utterly, and President Bush is absolutely determined to do just that." Cheney noted that the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when hijacked planes destroyed the twin towers of New York's World Trade Center and damaged the Pentagon, marked the birth of the "Bush doctrine" that any nation supporting or harboring terrorists was as guilty as the terrorists themselves. Without naming nations, Cheney warned that policy remains in effect. "If there is anyone in the world today who doubts the seriousness of the Bush doctrine, I would urge that person to consider the fate of the Taliban in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein's regime," he said. Cheney hailed the U.S. victory in Iraq, which quickly toppled Saddam's government in Baghdad, as proof that the American military is the best in the world. "With our victory in Iraq we have removed a threat to our country and to our friends in the region," Cheney said. While making no direct mention of Iran, a nation along with Iraq and North Korea that President Bush has called part of an "axis of evil," Cheney's latest comments came as the White House is turning its attention to Tehran. With military victories in Afghanistan and Iraq already in hand, administration hawks have begun portraying Iran as an imminent threat. The Bush administration has complained repeatedly about Iran's nuclear programs, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has accused Tehran of not doing enough against al Qaeda members allegedly in Iran. The network led by Saudi-born Osama bin Laden has been blamed for the Sept. 11 attacks. That same rhetoric linked to "terrorists" and the threat of weapons of mass destruction formed the basis for the U.S. invasion of Iraq in March. The United States has since had trouble uncovering weapons of mass destruction or conclusive links between Baghdad and terrorist organizations. _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk