Opinion
. ..In the wake of the terrorist attacks, the USA will not engage in navel-gazing but will rather try to restore the image of a decisive country and, above all, of a country which can take immediate action and inflict severe blows on any enemies regardless of whether these were directly involved in the terrorist strikes… It would not be premature to mention here some of the facets of this new policy: The construction of the anti-missile shield – which was opposed by the USA’s European allies in NATO – must now be seen as NATO’s first priority. Another major issue will be the total coordination among the intelligence services of all NATO members and other US allies such as Israel and Japan. Common action against groups and individuals suspected of involvement in terrorist acts or of connections with anarchist or terrorist organizations should be taken for granted. NATO may be transformed into a coordinating body to combat international terrorism as the alliance is the only existing Euro-Atlantic organization with considerable infrastructure to adapt itself to the new needs… The prevalent logic in Washington is that the confidence of American citizens in the country’s immunity has been shaken, that the international image of the superpower has to be restored as soon as possible and its hegemonic role consolidated; otherwise, no one can guarantee the country’s internal cohesion.
