We mourn with the world the passing of Pope John Paul II. His death brings to all a deep sense of grief and loss. He was a holy champion of the Filipino family and of the profound Christian values that make everyone of us contemplate, everyday, what is just, moral and sacred in life.

The Philippines was with the U.S. in the Second World War, in the Korean War, in the Vietnam War, and now in the war against terrorism.

I was at Ground Zero, and it was, to me, such a graphic illustration of what terrorism has done to our world.

In 1995, we had evidence of the brother-in-law of Osama bin Laden being in the Philippines, living in the Philippines. We had evidence of front organizations set up in the Philippines. And we uncovered evidence about, which would help the U.S. with - about the perpetuators of the World Trade Center bombing.

We have the hardest working people in the world, the most adaptable and the most congenial to employ.

We have our own home-grown terrorism, and to the extent that we can obliterate terrorism all over the world, then our own terrorism will be much easier to neutralize.