on the 90th National Convention of the American Legion, U.S. vice president, Dick Cheney, called Iranian regime the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and said: “We recognize there are still difficult challenges ahead in Iraq and the rest of the Middle East — including the efforts by the radical regime in Iran to develop technologies that would give it the capability to produce nuclear weapons. No one should have any illusions about this. Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism. Its leaders have repeatedly called for the death of America and the extermination of Israel. A nuclear-armed Iran would be a threat to our country’s vital interests. The United States remains focused on mobilizing friends and allies to pressure the Iranian regime to accept a diplomatic solution, to comply with the U.N. Security Council resolutions, and to abandon its efforts to develop a nuclear weapons capability. Diplomacy will always be our preferred course. But Iran must know that the United States is determined to defend its interests, and that all options remain on the table.”

In part of his speech he said: “In two weeks, we’ll mark another anniversary of September 11th, 2001 — and we’ll recall the attacks that took 3,000 lives and did such great harm to our nation. We’ll be reminded, once again, of the kind of adversaries that we face in this war. These extremists don’t wear a uniform or recognize any standard of warfare. They hate our country; they are determined to kill as many Americans as they can; and they are fully prepared to kill themselves in the process. Simply stated, an extremist cabal has turned its guns on the United States and the civilized world. For the sake of our freedom and security, we must not relent until this enemy is destroyed.

“The war on terror is not a figure of speech. On two fields of battle, it is a shooting war. The only way to win is by going on the offensive — and that’s exactly what we’re doing.

“In both countries( Afghanistan and Iraq), we confronted tyrants , in both countries we confronted tyrants and removed them from power. And we’re keeping our promise to support these democracies, and to help them build up their own defense forces, and to prevent terrorists from regaining a foothold in that critical region of the world.”