Bush: US is on alert

President George W Bush said today he knew many Americans were anxious about the threat of more terrorist attacks. But he said people should be assured that "the country is alert and the great power of the American nation will be felt".

Mr Bush, in his weekly radio address, said the US was "taking the war to the enemy and we are strengthening our defences here at home".

The goals of the first phase of the air campaign have been achieved, he said.

The president noted that he used his radio speech a week ago to issue a final warning to the Taliban to surrender the prime suspect Osama bin Laden and other terrorists or face the consequences.

"They did not listen, and they are paying a price," he said.

Mr Bush conducted a 30-minute video conference from Camp David, Maryland, today with national security officials at the presidential retreat and in the capital.

Joining from Washington were Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Colin Powell and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. With the president were Condoleezza Rice, the national security adviser, CIA Director George Tenet and Andrew Card, Mr Bush’s chief of staff.

Ms Rice updated Mr Bush on preparations for his trip next week to China for the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, where he will meet world leaders.

In the radio address, Mr Bush said the American and British air campaign against Taliban military targets has been performed with skill and courage and has met its objectives.

"We have disrupted the terrorist network inside Afghanistan," he said. "We have weakened the Taliban’s military. And we have crippled the Taliban’s air defences."

"American forces dominate the skies over Afghanistan and we will use that dominance to make sure terrorists can no longer freely use Afghanistan as a base of operations," the president said.

Mr Bush made clear the campaign was not over and that the US believes that "the best defence against terrorism is a strong offensive against terrorism".

"That work continues," he said.

Mr Bush said it was understandable that "many Americans are feeling uneasy" as the possibility rose of new terrorist attacks against US interests.

But he said Americans should be assured that the government is taking strong precautions, "we are vigilant, we are determined, the country is alert and the great power of the American nation will be felt".

Many Americans are asking what they can do as individuals, Mr Bush said.

"Americans already contribute to the war on terror by their patience and patriotism, by their resolve and generosity," he said.

The president renewed his call on American children to contribute a dollar each to help the children of Afghanistan.

Addressing children directly, he said: "I urge you to show the best of America by directly helping the children of Afghanistan who are suffering from the oppression and misrule of their own government."