The United States continued its biggest military mobilisation since the Gulf War today ahead of planned attacks on alleged terrorist bases in Afghanistan.
US military aircraft are reported to have landed at an airport in the former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan, close to Afghanistan, while a squadron of B-52 bombers joined US fighter jets, ships and special forces troops already on standby in the Middle East.
In a statement to the media today President George Bush acknowledged the scale of the blow delivered by last week's terror attacks on the US.
But he insisted the US is "still the greatest nation on the face of the Earth, and no terrorist will ever be able to decide our fate".
Meanwhile Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia accused Washington of forcing it into war. But still Kabul's Islamic regime insisted that it could not bend to Washington's demand that it hand over Osama bin Laden, the Saudi-born radical said by Washington to be behind the September 11th terror attacks on US cities.
"If Osama leaves of his own accord, nobody will stop him. But handing him over to the United States is impossible," said Abdul Hai Mutmaen, a spokesman for the Taliban's supreme leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar.
Taliban Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmed Mutawakel said: "If the US attacks Afghanistan we will have no option but to pursue jihad (holy war)."
The Taliban's continued defiance put it firmly in the firing line in Bush's "war on terrorism," and exposed it to massive reprisals from the US military force converging on bases within striking distance of Afghanistan.
President George Bush was due to hold a teleconference with his National Security Council from his Camp David country retreat to discuss attack plans as a squadron of powerful bombers and spy planes was deployed, officials said.
Today B-52 bombers capable of launching cruise missiles and high-altitude spy-planes joined the US strike force, part of a 40-strong second wave of warplanes deployed to join the jets, ships and special forces troops already on standby in the Middle East and the United States.
"They will be moving shortly if they haven't started," an air force official said, and White House spokesman Mr Ari Fleischer said: "The president has made it abundantly clear that this nation is preparing for war."
Mr Bush has vowed to use every military and political means to hunt down bin Laden and his al-Qaeda network of Islamic radicals, which Washington blames for the suicide attacks on New York and Washington that left more than 6,800 dead.
Today the diplomatic offensive which has built an unprecedented international coalition of support for the US campaign scored another victory in cutting off one of the Taliban's last links to the outside world.
The government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) broke off relations with the Taliban and left only Saudi Arabia and Pakistan maintaining contacts with the fundamentalist regime.
"The foreign ministry has asked the charge d'affaires at Afghanistan's embassy to leave the country within 24 hours," said the state WAM news agency, adding the UAE had tried and failed to persuade Kabul to give up Bin Laden.
Pakistan said it would not follow suit, but Afghanistan's neighbour and formerly close ally has already distanced itself from the militia under pressure from Washington and has agreed to support US military action.
The United States also secured the support of Turkey, the only majority Islamic member of NATO, which issued a statement saying it would allow US transport planes through its air space and would increase military aid to the Afghan opposition.
Washington's next diplomatic target will be Iran, with whom it has not had diplomatic relations since 1980. Tehran is no friend of the Taliban, but is a traditional US foe and has opposed military action.
"We're anxious to explore whatever opportunities for co-operation there might be in the fight against all forms of terrorism, not just one kind of terrorism," US Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell said when asked about Iran.
Tehran said today that it had received a message from Washington, and that British Foreign Minister Mr Jack Straw, whose government has been Mr Bush's strongest ally in the crisis, was due to visit Monday for talks.
AFP