Former Powell Aide Attacks 'cowboy' Bush

Colin Powell's former chief of staff at the state department has launched a scathing attack on the Bush administration, claiming that the vice-president and secretary of defence created a "Cheney-Rumsfeld cabal" that hijacked US foreign policy.

In an address to the New American Foundation reported in the Washington Post, Larry Wilkerson accused George Bush of "cowboyism", and said the current secretary of state, Condoleeza Rice, was "extremely weak". The former defence undersecretary, Douglas Feith, was dispatched with the words: "Seldom in my life have I met a dumber man."

Mr Wilkerson is a military veteran of 31 years' standing and former director of the Marine Corps War College. It is not the first time he has been critical of administration policies, but he has never been quite so outspoken before. The former colonel was often described by colleagues as the man who would say what Mr Powell was thinking but was too discreet to say.

"What I saw was a cabal between the vice president of the United States, Richard Cheney, and the secretary of defence, Donald Rumsfeld," he said. Between them they ran roughshod over the bureaucracy, stalling nuclear diplomacy with North Korea and Iran.

Mr Bush, he claimed, allowed it to happen because he was "not versed in international relations and not much interested". He said officials "condoned" prisoner abuse and left the army "truly in bad shape". He added: "If there is a nuclear terrorist attack or a major pandemic ... you are going to see the ineptitude of this government in a way that'll take you back to the declaration of independence."

Mr Wilkerson said Mr Powell, whom he described as "the world's most loyal soldier", was not pleased about his decision to go public, but said he took a different view of loyalty - not to the administration, but to the country.