The battle for Western values

Ruthless and indiscriminate terrorist methods, refined by ever more sophisticated techniques, have characterized the activities of those extreme Islamists who have taken the fight into the West.

At long last the Western world is waking up to the fact that it faces a real and present danger - nothing less than a determined assault on its very existence. Appeasement is not a practical option. This is an enemy fired up by religious zeal, utterly committed to its unacceptable purposes and not susceptible to discussion or negotiation. In short, as much as liberal opinion in the civilized world may flinch from the prospect, there is a battle to be fought and won. On Wednesday, September 3 -- coincidentally 75 years to the day after Britain declared war on Nazi Germany -- US President Barack Obama said: “Our objective is clear, and that is to degrade and destroy ISIL [the self-styled Islamic State(IS)].”

For his part, UK prime minister David Cameron has vowed that IS will "be squeezed out of existence". His remarks, made to a packed House of Commons, appeared to be preparing the ground for a broad coalition to drive out IS, following a formal invitation from the Iraqi government. At last week’s NATO summit in Wales, US Secretary of State John Kerry pulled together a coalition made up of Britain, France, Germany, Canada, Turkey, Italy, Poland and Denmark, along with Australia, to do just that, however long it takes.