The terror teams were few in number. Yet, their supply lines crossed four continents and spanned more than four years. This was not the work of a single terrorist cell but a terrorist army that acted as an accomplice of nation states. War came to America because terrorism was government policy. 

From Iraq to Afghanistan, from Syria to Yemen, the nations of the Middle East use terror as an instrument of state power. Unable to defeat their enemies on the battlefield, they wink at the training of terrorists on their territory. Because these men and women do not wear their country’s military uniform, those nation states loudly proclaim their own innocence.

But these nations are as complicit in the deaths of more than 6,300 Americans as if they -- and not Osama bin Laden--gave the final execution order. 

In the months ahead -- and it will take months to deploy the necessary forces -- America and its allies will unleash a massive assault on terrorism’s army. The glidepath to war starts with the terrorist camps in Afghanistan, but it cannot end there. Governments who shield or support this army must feel America’s wrath.

Until these nation states renounce terrorism as a de facto weapon in their own arsenals, they should be judged by their deeds, not their words. And by their own acts over the last few years, they remain prime suspects in this act of war.

A United States led coalition does have the capacity to target and destroy both the terrorists and their accomplices. Air strikes will precede any ground campaign. As in the run up to Desert Storm, those air strikes will be incisive and incessant.

Any air strikes will include planes and missiles made by IAM members, weapon systems that carry the union label.