What if...?

Democratic Vice-presidential nominee Joe Biden said last week that if Barack Obama becomes the president of the United States, the country will face an international crisis within 6 months. It's scary to think that even Obama's running mate is uncertain about his immediate future should he become the 44th president.

The question on this matter is not whether countries will test him or not, because that seems like a certainty. The question is how, and from where will the tests, or attacks, come?

It's clear that there are some countries that will be at the top of the list. Iran is a very likely possibility, because of the recent efforts to eliminate their nuclear development programs. Iran is very far from being a strong nuclear threat, but they may test Obama's policies on advancing their technology.

North Korea has always been seen as a threat to the United States, and it seems that with a young and "inexperienced" president leading us, it would be a prime opportunity for action from Kim Jong-Il. Again, it's likely that North Korea would only test Obama's threshold for bending the rules, and an attack seems unlikely.

A country who isn't necessarily considered to be an enemy of the US, but could easily start a large-scale conflict is Russia. It serves as an immediate and tangible threat the US and Obama, because of the faltering relationship between Vladimir Putin and President Bush.

Russia's actions as of late are a cause for concern, with the country resuming nuclear-armed bomber patrols in the Pacific Ocean. Russia also openly opposes the construction of a missle interception site in Poland to guard against attacks on Western Europe.

The biggest threat to America with Obama as the leader would most certainly be Al-Quaeda, in that they would be most willing to attack the US overtly. Because Osama bin Laden has said outright that he wishes to destroy the US economy, he should be considered our most important threat.

If Senator Obama wishes to have control over these threats to US security, he needs to assert himself as a no-nonsense player on the international stage, working hard with NATO and the UN to quell any backlash from his election.