America is determined to oppose the state sponsors of terror.  Yet we are equally determined to respect and help the men and women those regimes oppress.  Our enemy is not the Arab world.  Many friendly Arab governments are, themselves, the targets of extremist terror.  Our enemy is not Islam, a good and peace-loving faith, that brings direction and comfort to over one billion people, including millions of Americans.  And our enemy is not the people of any nation, even when their leaders harbor terrorists.  Our enemy is the terrorists themselves, and the regimes that shelter and sustain them. 

Afghanistan is a case in point.  Its Taliban regime has made that nation into a sanctuary and training ground for international terrorists -- terrorists who have killed innocent citizens of many nations, including our own.  The Taliban promotes terror abroad, and practices terror against its people, oppressing women and persecuting all who dissent. 

The Taliban has been given the opportunity to surrender all the terrorists in Afghanistan and to close down their camps and operations.  Full warning has been given, and time is running out. 

The Afghan people, however, are the victims of oppression, famine and misrule.  Many refugees from that unfortunate nation are on the move, and sadly, many Afghans are on the verge of starvation. 

America respects the Afghan people, their long tradition and their proud independence.  And we will help them in this time of confusion and crisis in their country. 

America has long been the largest source of food and humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan.  This week I announced an additional $320 million in aid to the Afghan people, to those within Afghanistan and those who have fled across borders.  Despite efforts by the Taliban to disrupt these critical aid shipments, we will deliver food and seeds, vaccines and medicines by truck, and even by draft animals.  Conditions permitting, we will bring help directly to the people of Afghanistan by air drops. 

This aid will help Afghans make it through the upcoming winter.  For the longer-term, I urge Congress to make funds available so that one day the United States can contribute, along with other friends of Afghanistan, to the reconstruction and development of that troubled nation. 

Helping people in great need is a central part of the Jewish, Christian and Islamic traditions, as well as many other faiths.  It is also a central part of the American tradition.  Even as we fight evil regimes we are generous to the people they oppress.  Following World War II, America fed and rebuilt Japan and Germany, and their people became some of our closest friends in the world. 

In the struggle ahead, we will act in accordance with American ideals.  We're offering help and friendship to the Afghan people.  It is their Taliban rulers, and the terrorists they harbor, who have much to fear. 

Thank you for listening. 

We are joined in this operation by our staunch friend, Great Britain. Other close friends, including Canada, Australia, Germany and France, have pledged forces as the operation unfolds.  More than 40 countries in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and across Asia have granted air transit or landing rights.  Many more have shared intelligence.  We are supported by the collective will of the world. 

More than two weeks ago, I gave Taliban leaders a series of clear and specific demands:  Close terrorist training camps; hand over leaders of the al Qaeda network; and return all foreign nationals, including American citizens, unjustly detained in your country.  None of these demands were met.  And now the Taliban will pay a price.  By destroying camps and disrupting communications, we will make it more difficult for the terror network to train new recruits and coordinate their evil plans. 

Initially, the terrorists may burrow deeper into caves and other entrenched hiding places.  Our military action is also designed to clear the way for sustained, comprehensive and relentless operations to drive them out and bring them to justice. 

At the same time, the oppressed people of Afghanistan will know the generosity of America and our allies.  As we strike military targets, we'll also drop food, medicine and supplies to the starving and suffering men and women and children of Afghanistan. 

The United States of America is a friend to the Afghan people, and we are the friends of almost a billion worldwide who practice the Islamic faith.  The United States of America is an enemy of those who aid terrorists and of the barbaric criminals who profane a great religion by committing murder in its name. 

This military action is a part of our campaign against terrorism, another front in a war that has already been joined through diplomacy, intelligence, the freezing of financial assets and the arrests of known terrorists by law enforcement agents in 38 countries.  Given the nature and reach of our enemies, we will win this conflict by the patient accumulation of successes, by meeting a series of challenges with determination and will and purpose. 

Today we focus on Afghanistan, but the battle is broader.  Every nation has a choice to make.  In this conflict, there is no neutral ground. If any government sponsors the outlaws and killers of innocents, they have become outlaws and murderers, themselves.  And they will take that lonely path at their own peril. 

I'm speaking to you today from the Treaty Room of the White House, a place where American Presidents have worked for peace.  We're a peaceful nation.  Yet, as we have learned, so suddenly and so tragically, there can be no peace in a world of sudden terror.  In the face of today's new threat, the only way to pursue peace is to pursue those who threaten it. 

We did not ask for this mission, but we will fulfill it.  The name of today's military operation is Enduring Freedom.  We defend not only our precious freedoms, but also the freedom of people everywhere to live and raise their children free from fear. 

I know many Americans feel fear today.  And our government is taking strong precautions.  All law enforcement and intelligence agencies are working aggressively around America, around the world and around the clock. At my request, many governors have activated the National Guard to strengthen airport security.  We have called up Reserves to reinforce our military capability and strengthen the protection of our homeland. 

In the months ahead, our patience will be one of our strengths -- patience with the long waits that will result from tighter security; patience and understanding that it will take time to achieve our goals; patience in all the sacrifices that may come. 

Today, those sacrifices are being made by members of our Armed Forces who now defend us so far from home, and by their proud and worried families.  A Commander-in-Chief sends America's sons and daughters into a battle in a foreign land only after the greatest care and a lot of prayer. We ask a lot of those who wear our uniform.  We ask them to leave their loved ones, to travel great distances, to risk injury, even to be prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice of their lives.  They are dedicated, they are honorable; they represent the best of our country.  And we are grateful. 

To all the men and women in our military -- every sailor, every soldier, every airman, every coastguardsman, every Marine    -- I say this: Your mission is defined; your objectives are clear; your goal is just.  You have my full confidence, and you will have every tool you need to carry out your duty. 

I recently received a touching letter that says a lot about the state of America in these difficult times -- a letter from a 4th-grade girl, with a father in the military:  "As much as I don't want my Dad to fight," she wrote, "I'm willing to give him to you." 

This is a precious gift, the greatest she could give.  This young girl knows what America is all about.  Since September 11, an entire generation of young Americans has gained new understanding of the value of freedom, and its cost in duty and in sacrifice. 

The battle is now joined on many fronts.  We will not waver; we will not tire; we will not falter; and we will not fail.  Peace and freedom will prevail. 

Thank you.  May God continue to bless America.
END        1:07 P.M, EDT