The trauma and horror of war struck another generation of Americans yesterday as thousands died in the collapse of the World Trade Centre's twin towers in New York, following attacks on them and on the Pentagon in Washington by hijacked planes presumably controlled by terrorist groups associated with hostile states. The victims and the buildings symbolise the global reach and power of the United States, drawing out the sympathy of all who participate in those human and commercial networks for the trauma, devastation and murderous attacks they suffered yesterday.
Ireland, like every other democratic state, feels the direct effects of this tragedy. The deep and intimate relations built up over many years with the US were eloquently made plain by the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern and the President, Mrs McAleese, in Dublin yesterday.
There will be great international sympathy and solidarity with the US government as it deals with the crisis. These are appalling crimes visited on ordinary people earning their living and going about their everyday concerns. To see such potent symbols of American power attacked so boldly, openly and effectively is to realise how vulnerable modern societies are to such terrorist assaults.
They come not from states but from paramilitary organisations with access to substantial organisational, logistical and military resources. There has been an extraordinary failure of intelligence, despite advance warnings that deepening conflict in the Middle East could provoke atrocities of this magnitude.
President Clinton tried unsuccessfully to get US domestic airlines to cooperate with enhanced security arrangements, after they resisted the imposition of restrictions they said would inhibit mobility. The assumption that terrorist attacks originate only from external flights has been shown to be cruelly wrong. It will take weeks and months for the implications of such facts to be worked out in full. In the immediate future a rapid military retaliation can be expected against suspected groups and states. That could tip the world into a new period of instability, which is likely to be accompanied by a deepening economic downturn.
That combination will send shudders through an anxious world ready to respond to this American tragedy with sympathy and solidarity as the full implications of yesterday's events are absorbed. They will be engraved on popular memories just as were the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 or the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963. It is a profound reminder that we live in one world, however divided it is by wealth and culture. The political and security consequences will also be deeply felt. It is an extraordinary test of President George W. Bush's leadership qualities. Yesterday he was clearly shocked, preoccupied by immediate security concerns and intent on threatening revenge for these ruthless and humiliating blows to its prestige and international standing. There are many questions to be asked about how these attacks could have happened, but Mr Bush will have great goodwill as he and his colleagues decide how to respond.
It is critically important that the Administration adopts a cooperative attitude, drawing fully on this international goodwill, rather than rely only on their own immense military resources. That will mean working with allies and with the United Nations in pursuit of those responsible for yesterday's tragic deaths and in elaborating multilateral plans to tackle it on a global basis. Such a choice would affirm the United States's leadership role by retrieving some of the goodwill eroded in the administration's recent unilateralist approaches to environment and security issues. This is a highly sensitive issue, which will need careful handling by its friends and allies.
If, as is widely suspected, these attacks have originated among paramilitary groups in the Middle East stoked up by the deteriorating conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, basic questions will have to be asked about the diplomatic handling of the issue by the Bush administration. Their standing aside from it seemed to endorse an escalation of violence. That will not be properly addressed by an angry resort to arms after these attacks. By the same token Israeli and Palestinian leaders must take pause to reflect on the dangers of continuing conflict and redouble efforts to achieve a truce that can enable then rebuilding of political dialogue. Otherwise there is a grave danger of a more generalised war.
The economic consequences of yesterday's events are equally ominous. Many analysts have concluded that US consumer confidence is a critical factor in holding out the promise of avoiding a world economic downturn, given the collapse of confidence in Japan and sluggish growth in the Euro zone. It could take a long time for it to be restored after this body blow to the heart of the US commercial world. The knock-on effects on stock, currency and oil markets show how suddenly volatile international economic behaviour has become. This is a time for cool heads and confidence in political leaderships to restore confidence. It will take time for that to be exerted and take effect. The hearts of the Irish people and political leaders go out to their fellows in the United States as they cope with these dreadful events.