The West must not underestimate Islam's internal problems

The same process is happening now in the Islamic world. In Iran, for example, over half the population are aged under 18 - and they are tired of the old men who run the country. They want Western goods and services.

Finally, there is a great deal of resentment among people in the Islamic world that their life is a lot harsher than it is for those in the Western world. The Islamic world has a rapidly growing population (one of the duties of Muslims is to have many children and to raise them as Muslims).

But there are not the jobs for them. Young people have access to the media and so they can see from foreign programmes how well people live in Western countries.

A common mindset in Iraq is now: "Americans go home - and take me with you". There is anger against their corrupt and inefficient governments. In some countries (such as Algeria and Egypt) this has become low-intensity warfare.

 In short, the Islamic threats to world peace do not come from a generalised threat against the West. Instead, many Islamic countries have many internal problems that result in violence in their own countries. The recent violence in Saudi Arabia - the major supplier of oil to the world market - is a warning to us.