The terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11 were watched with revulsion and horror around the world. In their assault against the United States, the terrorists struck at the entire world. The horrendous loss of innocent lives deserves only to be condemned in the strongest possible words. These attacks mark a critical juncture in international and American politics. What the events of September 11 have definitively demonstrated is that world geo-political equations can be changed overnight. The World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks have ensured that, for a long time to come, the conduct of international relations is going to be carried out under the backdrop of terrorism. In demanding that the world take sides in its crusade against jihad, Washington has set the parameters for a conflict that is quite unlike the one it had fought against the erstwhile Soviet Union. The world will not take sides quite so easily, at least not for a sustained period. In the short-term, a coalition to take out Osama Bin Ladin may hold. But beyond that, the durability of any coalition against a threat as vaguely defined, as "terrorism" is open to question. One need only point out the subtle conditionalities being slipped into their statements by virtually every country after the initial enthusiasm to support Washington. The US, if it indeed wishes to fight global terrorism, is in for a tough fight – perhaps tougher in some ways than the one it had against the Soviet Union. And the allies of the cold war can no longer be reliably counted upon to act in the larger interest. Nonetheless, the need of the hour is to as one against terrorism everywhere. Terrorism, whether it is trans-border, or trans-continental, is linked. The fight against terrorism can succeed only if it is sustained, coordinated and on a global scale. Terrorist networks everywhere must be torn up. There is no room for complacency or half measures when the very survival of civilization and freedom is at stake.