America only can leads his friends.

ASHINGTON, Feb. 15 — Vice President Dick Cheney offered a strong rebuttal today to allied officials who have criticized the Bush administration's aggressive stance toward Iraq, saying the United States was prepared to use all available means to stop Saddam Hussein from continuing his development of weapons of mass destruction and that he expected allied support if "aggressive action is required."

Addressing the Council on Foreign Relations here, Mr. Cheney stressed that Iraq and Iran were dangerous adversaries and underscored that Washington had a responsibility to broaden its campaign against terrorism. He said that Washington would not be dissuaded by international criticism that the Bush administration was too eager to use force and too unilateral in its actions.

"America has friends and allies in this cause, but only we can lead it," Mr. Cheney said, referring to the war on terrorism. "Only we can rally the world in a task of this complexity against an enemy so elusive and so resourceful. The United States and only the United States can see this effort through to victory."

Speaking of the new phase of Washington's efforts, Mr. Cheney said President Bush was determined to press on and stop Iraq, Iran and North Korea from continuing to develop weapons of mass destruction.

"The president's made it clear that this will be a priority," Mr. Cheney said. "We will use all the means at our disposal — meaning military, diplomatic, intelligence, etc. — to address these concerns."

This week allies have become increasingly critical of the administration's tough tone. fearing that it signals a dangerous expansion in Washington's war on terror. In Europe, for example, Chris Patten, the European Union's external affairs chief, argued today in The Financial Times that the success of the United States military campaign in Afghanistan might embolden the administration to act recklessly.

"The Afghan war," Mr. Patten wrote, has "perhaps reinforced some dangerous instincts: that the projection of military power is the only basis of true security; that the U.S. can rely on no one but itself; and that allies may be useful as optional extras."

President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and Prime Minister Jean Chrétien of Canada have also urged Washington not to act unilaterally against Iraq or Iran. South Korean officials have quietly fretted that Mr. Bush's comments have undercut their efforts to engage North Korea.

"If we try to do it unilaterally it will go nowhere," Mr. Chrétien said. Mr. Cheney's appearance before the council represented his most comprehensive presentation in a public forum since the Sept. 11 attacks. For several months, he has rarely been seen in public and has often worked in an undisclosed location outside Washington, a precaution against terrorist attacks.

Asked whether his elusive working habits had given him a James Bond- like aura, he seemed to savor the question for a moment and then answered in his characteristically droll manner. "There are certain features of his lifestyle I've not been able to avail myself," Mr. Cheney said. "But I'm certainly hopeful."

Mr. Cheney's message on foreign policy, however, was tough and certainly not the one that many allied officials wanted to hear. On Iran, he acknowledged that his views had hardened since his oil business days a year and a half ago, when he was urging efforts to rebuild a relationship with Tehran. In the sharpest criticism of Iran by a Bush administration official, he asserted that the Iranian government was trying to derail the Arab-Israeli peace process by shipping arms to the Palestinians.

"There is a great yearning on the part of the Iranian people to restore and re-establish relationships with the U.S. and the West," Mr. Cheney said. "By the same token, the government appears to be committed, for example, to trying to destroy the peace process as it relates to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And we've seen all too many examples of their active support of terrorism and their, as the president said the other night in the State of the Union speech, unstinting efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction."

As for Iraq, Mr. Cheney's comments come at an important juncture. Next month, he is scheduled to visit 12 allied and Middle East nations in a trip widely seen an effort to elicit their cooperation in overthrowing Saddam Hussein through the use of tougher economic sanctions, covert operations and, potentially, military force.

When Mr. Cheney addressed Iraq right after the Sept. 11 attacks the United States was preoccupied with hunting down the Qaeda leaders responsible. Mr. Cheney said at that time that there was no evidence linking Baghdad to the terrorist attacks in America.

"Saddam Hussein is bottled up at this point," Mr. Cheney told NBC News on Sept. 16.

Now, however, the Afghan campaign is winding down and Washington is focusing on new threats. So Mr. Cheney's tone about Iraq today was very different.

"If you were to put together a list of states," Mr. Cheney said of Iraq, "clearly that's got to be one we focus on."

"Not only do they have a robust set of programs to develop their own weapons of mass destruction; this is a place that's used it," he continued. "And we know he drove the inspectors out three years ago, and we know he has been actively and aggressively doing everything he can to enhance his capabilities. He has in the past had some dealings with terrorists, clearly. Abu Nidal for a long time operated out of Baghdad."

Some American officials have said that they expect the Administration to go to the United Nations in May to try to toughen sanctions against the Hussein regime. A demand for unfettered United Nations access, they say, might also be issued at that point, in the form of an ultimatum.

At the same time, they said, Washington will be preparing a campaign of covert action and military strikes to dislodge Mr. Hussein if he frustrates inspections, which American officials believe is virtually certain.

"I think if aggressive action is required, I would anticipate there would be the appropriate support for that, both from the American people and the international community," Mr. Cheney said.

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