Attacking the "axis of evil": with activity in Afghanistan winding down, the U.S. ponders targets from Africa to Asia.

• Author: Vilbig, Peter
• Position: International

Nobody would have predicted that only six months after suicide attackers brought down the World Trade Center towers and set the Pentagon on fire, the U.S. would be ready to move on to Phase 2 in its war on terrorism.

But with the swift victory of the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan, the war's next phase is starting now. Although administration officials haven't outlined the new strategy in detail, recent comments by President Bush, coupled with U.S. actions, suggest that the war on terrorism is going global and will be fought on two fronts.

One could involve direct confrontation with three nations President Bush has branded the "axis of evil"--Iran, North Korea, and especially Iraq, a longtime U.S. enemy (see "Is Iraq Next?" page 22). The U.S. charges that each of these nations is trying to develop weapons of mass destruction that might be handed over to terrorists.

The second front will pursue a shadowy network of Islamic fundamentalist groups linked by U.S. officials to Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda terror network, through dozens of countries like the Philippines, Indonesia, Somalia, and Yemen.

The new strategy marks a dramatic shift toward a more active U.S. foreign policy in the post-Sept. 11 world. "The focus has really changed," says Maya Chadda, a professor of political science at William Paterson University. "U.S. foreign policy has turned direction 180 degrees with the military as the spearhead to refashion the world and get rid of unfriendly regimes."

Months of debate in the White House, the Pentagon, the State Department, and Congress has shaped the new approach. The debate pitted hard-liners, who favor the wide use of U.S. power, against moderates, who prefer diplomatic pressure over force. The President's harsh words may mean hard-liners in the administration are winning the argument. Bush administration officials now say the U.S. is making plans to topple Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein--although presidential aides say there are no plans for immediate action against Iran or North Korea.

WARNINGS ON "AXIS OF EVIL"

The get-tough faction's reasoning goes like this: Iraq, Iran, and North Korea have been working to develop weapons of mass destruction--an umbrella term for nuclear, biological, or chemical arms capable of inflicting huge casualties. All three nations actively support terrorist groups. Thus, the U.S. has no choice but to act, since any of the countries could provide terrorists with horrific weapons to use against U.S...